Skyroot Aerospace test-fired India’s first privately built cryogenic rocket engine called Dhawan-1.

Key Points

• Skyroot Aerospace demonstrated the upper stage of its Vikram-2 launch vehicle.
• The cryogenic rocket engine is 100 per cent 3D printed and 100 percent made in India.
• It has been named after Satish Dhawan, who was the third chairman of ISRO. He pioneered the development of advanced launch capabilities of India.

The Vikram Rocket

• Vikram Rocket has been named after pioneering Vikram Sarabhai, who kickstarted the ambitious space program in India. He also conducted advanced nuclear research.
• The rocket uses a combination of Liquid Natural Gas, which is more than 90 per cent methane. Liquid Natural Gas is used in combination with Liquid Oxygen. In Combined form, it is called as “Methalox”, which form a cryogenic rocket fuel.
• The combination provides for high performance and is having low cost. The fuel is environmentally friendly. Thus, leading this fuel is dubbed as “Fuel of the future” by the Skyroot Aerospace engineers.