Also known as Crew Escape System, the ‘pad abort test’ was successfully conducted by Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) on the 5th of July. The system is designed to detach the astronaut cabin, along with the crew from the launch vehicle or rocket during the launch abort.
The test took place at Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota at 7:00 A.M. It was the first pad abort test conducted for the human space mission. As the report in The Hindu tells, “It (the crew module) was propelled on its own seven specially made complex in-built rockets. In the next four-odd minutes, it reached a height of 2.7 km and curved down into the Bay of Bengal on parachutes. It landed in sea at a distance of 2.9 km from the launch centre.”
There were a few more tests conducted along with PAT, and a few more which are yet to be conducted for astronauts’ safety during a space mission, according to the ISRO chairman, K. Sivan.
The space agency further states that, “The Pad Abort Test demonstrated the safe recovery of the crew module in case of any exigency at the launch pad.” (Source –The Hindu)
