Sounding rocket developed by students of VIT to soar on 7th

Engineering students of VIT University, Vellore, will add another feather to their cap when sounding rocket Rohini-200 (RH200) is launched into space from Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre’s (VSSC) Thumba equatorial  station in Thiruvananthapuram at 3 pm on July 7.

A sounding rocket, sometimes called a research rocket, is an instrument carrying rocket designed to take measurements and perform scientific experiments during its sub-orbital flight.

Sounding rockets provide weightlessness to their payload with experiments during the unpowered flight phase the duration of which is determined by the apogee reached by the rocket.

Engineering students Dev Sharma, Sunayan Kumar, Himanshu Misra, Chandresh Mittal, Ankit Sharma, Manish Kumar Narnoli, Nitesh Kumar and Gautam Alok created the sounding rocket that was funded by the VIT University.

The varsity plans a second phase of the project, which will include fabrication of the entire rocket with advanced payloads. The rocket was created in collaboration with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

While VSSC’s former director (projects) Ramakrishnan mooted the idea, the students were mentored by VIT mechanical engineering professor Geetha Manivasagam. The team fabricated the payload and other components for the sounding rocket, VIT sources told DNA.

“The team also designed the payload with a 3-axis accelerometer with signal conditioned voltage outputs with the capability of measuring dynamic acceleration from motion, shock, or vibration.

The payload was mostly designed and tested at VSSC facility,” the sources said.

This measurement will enhance the performance of the rocket in future. The rocket also carries a new technology as a super capacitor instead of a replaces a battery to fire the second stage of the rocket without any reduction in the voltage.

The team was also responsible for designing the mechanical isolation system with the bus arrangement of the payload. This project gave the students an opportunity to work on a real time project, providing them a better understanding of the recent advancement in the rocket science, the sources said.