Space scientists met at the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) in Thiruvananthapuram on Saturday to discuss the failure of GSLV D3, India's first launch vehicle to be powered by an indigenous cryogenic engine.
Scientists have begun assessing data on 300 performance parameters of the cryogenic stage, including pressure and temperature, and will come to preliminary conclusions within two or three days, P.S. Veeraraghavan, director of VSSC told The Hindu .
On Thursday the rocket plunged into the Bay of Bengal less than 10-minutes after take-off when the cryogenic engine failed to ignite. A second, more comprehensive, meeting will be conducted on a later date to scrutinize the reasons behind the mission's failure, Dr. Veeraraghavan said.
“What we have to arrive at is why the engine failed to ignite,” said S. Satish, head of public relations at ISRO.
ISRO chairman K. Radhakrishnan will participate in the meeting at Thiruvananthapuram. The Rs. 330-crore mission was to have placed an advanced communication satellite GSAT-4 in orbit.
