Vyommitra: The Indian Space Research Organization has developed a female-looking spacefaring humanoid robot to monitor the functioning of a crewed orbital spacecraft i.e. Gaganyaan. ISRO first revealed the Vyommitra on 22 January 2020 at the Human Spaceflight and Exploration symposium in Bengaluru.
Recently, the Union Minister of State for Space, Mr. Jitendra Singh announced that the Indian Space Research Organization is going to conduct the trial of the Gaganyaan mission in October 2023. For this mission, ISRO will launch Vyommitra, a female spacefaring humanoid robot.
The word Vyommitra is derived from the Sanskrit Language and consists of two names 'Vyoma' and 'Mitra'. The word 'Vyom' refers to 'Space' and 'Mitra' refers to 'Friend'. The term Vyommitra means the device that will monitor the issues and serve as a monitoring device for all the operations. It is a proto-type half-humanoid machine for sending quick updates of the mission Gaganyaan to monitor the operations for its success.
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The female-looking half-humanoid robot has been developed by the Indian Space Research Organization to inhibit quick alerts, signal-sending capabilities, and execute life support processes. It will help the astronauts to communicate with the authorities, reporting useful information for the proper execution of the mission.
Since 2021, Vyommitra has been put under testing at the headquarters of ISRO (Indian Space Research Organization) in Bengaluru. The robot passed testing in a number of settings, including a simulated space environment. Vyommitra will be sent into orbit during the Gaganyaan mission onboard the Indian Spacecraft Orbital Vehicle (ISRO).
During its nearly one-week stay in orbit, the robot will carry out a number of activities. Testing the communication, navigation, and life support systems will be one of these jobs. In addition, information on the impacts of space flight on people will be gathered by Vyommitra.
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The Gaganyaan project plans to launch a crew of three people into orbit at a 400-kilometer altitude for a 3-day mission before returning them safely to land in Indian sea waters.
The project has been finished using the most feasible strategy, taking into account internal expertise, industry experience, academic & research agencies' intellectual capacity, and cutting-edge technologies offered by foreign organizations. The development of several essential technologies, such as human-rated launch vehicles for carrying crew safely into space, life support systems to provide a familiar environment for the crew while they remain in space, crew emergency escape provisions, and evolving crew management aspects for crew training, recovery, and rehabilitation, is essential for the Gaganyaan mission.
Various precursor missions are planned to demonstrate the Technology Preparedness Levels before carrying out the actual Human Space Flight mission. These demonstrator missions include Integrated Air Drop Test (IADT), Pad Abort Test (PAT), and Test Vehicle (TV) flights. The safety and reliability of all systems will be proven in unmanned missions preceding manned missions.
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The Vyommitra Robot is efficient in testing the systems and procedures that will be used for the manned mission in a safe and controlled environment. Vyommitra can provide data on the effects of space travel on humans, which will help to improve the safety of future manned space missions. The Gaganyaan mission is a major milestone of the Indian Space Research Organization. It is a significant mission that will help the success of the Gaganyaan mission and will clear a path for India's various upcoming space missions.
The officials have not announced the launch date of Vyommitra Mission yet. It is expected to be announced soon by the Indian Space Research Organization. As per the latest announcement made by Minister Jitendra Singh, the Vyommitra Mission trial will be initiated in the last of October 2023. We will update the Vyommitra Launch Date here once announced by the authorities.