GSLV Mark-III launch rehearsal to begin on Sunday night

Indian Space agency ISRO will begin the launch rehearsal of the Geo-synchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle-Mark III (LVM3 X mission) on Sunday night, a top official said.

"The rehearsal for the launch of GSLV-Mark III will begin tonight," ISRO Chairman K Radhakrishnan told reporters at the airport in Chennai on Sunday. ISRO has already announced that the GSLV Mark-III, its heaviest rocket, will be launched on December 18, which would carry active solid boosters, liquid core stage and a passive cryo-stage.

The Space agency had said the mission would "validate its atmospheric ascent, esp. the aerodynamic and control features that cannot be decisively tested on ground." Satish Dhawan Space Centre Director M Y S Prasad had said the launch intended to test the atmospheric characteristics and stability of the updated rocket on its way up. It would also carry the CARE (Crew-module Atmospheric Re-entry Experiment) Module and also study the crew module on its re-entry into the atmosphere. The rocket would cost Rs 140 crore and the crew module Rs 15 crore.