Sunday 05 / July / 2026
New Delhi: The first ground test of the SOLVE solid motor was carried out successfully at the Static Test Facility, Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota. The test was successfully conducted on 03-07-2026 at 10:00hrs and the motor performance parameters are as expected. The development of SOLVE vehicle provides flexibility in conducting Gaganyaan Test Missions simulating various conditions in the actual mission.
ISRO is developing a solid motor based Sub-Orbital Launch Vehicle for Experiments (SOLVE) as a test platform to carry out Integrated Parachute Tests for validation of deceleration system of Gaganyaan Crew Module under various test conditions.
During these test missions, the Crew Module will be carried to an altitude of 10 - 17 km and separated from the vehicle. A series of 10 parachutes will be deployed to reduce the velocity of the Crew Module before splashdown in the sea.
The solid stage of SOLVE is derived from the PSLV Strap-on Motor with few modifications to meet the Gaganyaan test requirements including development of slow burn rate propellant and straight nozzle with secondary injection thrust vector control.
Key Parachute Testing Milestones
SOLVE Solid Motor Test (July 2026): ISRO successfully ground-tested the solid motor for its new SOLVE test vehicle at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre. This rocket is designed to carry the Crew Module to altitudes of 10–17 km to simulate actual mission conditions for the parachutes.
Integrated Air-Drop Test 02 (April 2026): ISRO successfully conducted the second Integrated Air-Drop Test (IADT-02) by lifting a 5.7-ton Crew Module with a Chinook helicopter and dropping it from an altitude of 3 km over the Bay of Bengal near Sriharikota. The test successfully validated the autonomous deployment of the drogue and main parachutes for a safe splashdown.
Main Parachute Stress Tests (November 2025): ISRO completed a drop test from an Indian Air Force IL-76 aircraft to test extreme failure scenarios, such as delayed inflation and asymmetric disreefing, demonstrating the system's structural integrity.
Drogue Parachute Qualification (December 2025): A series of qualification tests were finalized at the Terminal Ballistics Research Laboratory (TBRL) in Chandigarh to evaluate the conical ribbon-type drogue parachutes that stabilize and slow the module during re-entry.
