ISRO successfully tests scramjet engine

India on Sunday morning successfully tested its own scramjet or the air-breathing engine with the launch of a big sounding rocket, said a senior official of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). “The mission was successful. Two scramjet engines were tested during the flight. The finer details about the test will be known later,” the official not wanting to be quoted told IANS. He said that as scheduled the two stage/engine RH-560 sounding rocket took off from the rocket port located at Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) in Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh. He said the two air breathing engines were like hugging the rocket on its sides and normally when the rocket reaches a height of 11 km the scramjet engines would start breathing air. “The scramjet engines were ignited 55 seconds into the rocket’s flight. The engines were tested for six seconds,” he added. The scramjet engine, used only during the atmospheric phase of the rocket’s flight, will help in bringing down the launch cost by reducing the amount of oxidiser to be carried along with the fuel. President Pranab Mukherjee on Sunday congratulated the ISRO for successfully testing the scramjet engine. In a message to ISRO Chairman A.S. Kiran Kumar, the President said: “I extend my hearty congratulations to you and your entire team for the successful conduct of Futuristic Rocket Test - Advanced Technology Vehicle (ATV).” IANS