Kulasekarapattinam Spaceport (Tamil Nadu): India’s Second Spaceport

Context: 

Honorable Prime Minister laid the foundation stone for India’s second spaceport at Kulasekarapattinam, a coastal village in Tamil Nadu’s Thoothukudi district.

What Is a Space Port? 

• A spaceport or cosmodrome is a site for launching or receiving spacecraft, by analogy to a seaport for ships or an airport for aircraft. 
• Factors Considered for a spaceport Establishment: Geographical location, weather conditions, and availability of vast tracts of uninhabited land, among others. 
• India established its first spaceport, Satish Dhawan Space Centre (initially known as Sriharikota Range), in the year 1971, in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.

Why Do We need a New Space Port? 

• Due to limitations faced by its current facility at Sriharikota, particularly when launching satellites into polar orbits. 
• Having 2 spaceports: 
  • Offers More flexibility and ability to launch in greater numbers, 
  • It will increase revenue from Private firms ( recently Agnikul Cosmos inaugurated its launch pad at Sriharikota), Startups & other foreign players.

What Is Special about Kulasekarapattinam Spaceport?

• Offers a strategic advantage: Kulasekarapattinam, located 700 kilometers south of Sriharikota, offers a strategic advantage for such launches without the need to overfly Sri Lanka (Dogleg Manoeuvre).
• Ensures fuel-efficient trajectories and Maximizes payload capacity, especially crucial for smaller rockets catering to the growing demand for small satellite launches. 

• Recently , the Establishment of a Space Industrial and Propellant Park near Thoothukudi District. 
  • This facility near the new spaceport would ensure efficient logistics and supply chain management.

About Launch Site: 

• Historical significance: It was an ancient port dating back to the 1st century AD. 
  • During that period, it thrived alongside other renowned ports such as Kollam, Cheran, and Pandyan.
• Selection of Kulasekarapattinam : It offers strategic advantages, particularly in enhancing payload capability with its direct southward launch trajectory for small launch vehicles.
• The launch site will be fully commissioned within 24 months .
• It will enhance the space activities of Non-Governmental Entities(NGEs).

News Source: Indian Express

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