Overview
- ISRO fired the improved SS3 for 108 seconds on December 30 at the Solid Motor Static Test Facility in Sriharikota.
- About 233 instruments tracked pressure, thrust, temperature, vibration and actuator performance, with results matching predictions.
- The stage employs a carbon‑epoxy filament‑wound motor case built at VSSC, with the solid motor cast at SDSC.
- Upgrades include a redesigned igniter and nozzle plus a fault‑tolerant electro‑mechanical nozzle actuation system with low‑power control electronics.
- 2025 capacity additions—a new solid‑motor line at Sriharikota, a second ammonium perchlorate line at Alwaye and an indigenous 10‑tonne mixer at SDSC—support a higher launch cadence and have enabled static tests for a private orbital launcher’s motor.