Overview

• The SMPS is a regulated bi-propellant subsystem tasked with orbit circularisation, on-orbit control, de-boost manoeuvres and critical ascent-phase abort operations.
• On July 12, a full-duration 350-second hot firing at the Mahendragiri Propulsion Complex validated the SMPS’s performance under off-nominal abort conditions.
• The propulsion package comprises five 440-Newton Liquid Apogee Motor engines and sixteen 100-Newton Reaction Control System thrusters for precision thrust management.
• Developed by ISRO’s Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre and vetted through 25 system demonstration model tests totalling 14,331 seconds, the SMPS has met human-rating requirements.
• Three Indian Air Force pilots have completed initial astronaut training in Russia and are now in mission-specific preparations as ISRO targets uncrewed orbital tests in late 2025 en route to a crewed launch in early 2027.