On May 18, ISRO launched a PSLV rocket (PSLV-C61) to place the EOS-09 satellite into a sun-synchronous polar orbit.
However, a few minutes after liftoff, the rocket faced a problem in its third stage, causing the mission to fail.
The PSLV rocket has four stages, each powered by different engines that burn various fuels to generate thrust.
The first stage uses hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene-bound (HTPB) propellant.
The second uses a Vikas engine with a specific fuel and oxidizer
The third again uses HTPB
The fourth stage uses monomethylhydrazine with mixed oxides of nitrogen.
After the failure, ISRO chairman V. Narayanan stated that the chamber pressure in the third stage dropped during the flight, causing the failure.
ISRO will investigate the cause of the pressure loss and attempt to relaunch EOS-09 in the future.
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