Satellite Launch Vehicle Explained

Height:	22m (72feet)
Mass:	17000kg (37,000lb)
Diameter:	1m (03feet)
Manufacturer:	ISRO
Function:	Small-lift launch vehicle
Country-Origin:	India
Capacities:	Kilos: 400kg (900lb)
Status:	Retired
First:	10 August 1979
Last:	17 April 1983
Launches:	4
Success:	2
Fail:	1
Partial:	1
Sites:	Satish Dhawan Space Centre
Derivatives:	ASLV, PSLV
Payloads:	Rohini
Stagedata:	Type: stage Stageno: First Burntime: seconds Type: stage Stageno: Second Si: 267 sec Burntime: 40 seconds Propmass: 3 tonnes Thrust: 20 tonnes Type: stage Stageno: Third Si: 277 sec Burntime: 45 seconds Propmass: 1 tonnes Thrust: 6.3 tonnes Type: stage Stageno: Fourth Si: 283 sec Burntime: 33 seconds Propmass: 262 kg Thrust: 2.4 tonnes

The Satellite Launch Vehicle or SLV was a small-lift launch vehicle project started in the early 1970s by the Indian Space Research Organisation to develop the technology needed to launch satellites. SLV was intended to reach a height of and carry a payload of .^[1] The first experimental flight of SLV, in August 1979, was a failure. The first successful launch took place on 18 July 1980.

It was a four-stage rocket with all solid-propellant motors.^[2]

The first launch of the SLV took place in Sriharikota on 10 August 1979. The fourth and final launch of the SLV took place on 17 April 1983.

It has taken approximately seven years to realise the vehicle from start. The solid motor case for first and second stage are fabricated from 15 CDV6 steel sheets and third and fourth stages from fibre reinforced plastic.^[3]

Launch history

All four SLV launches occurred from the SLV Launch Pad at the Sriharikota High Altitude Range. The first two launches were experimental (E) and the next 2 were designated as developmental (D) as this was the first launch vehicle being developed by India not intended for a long service life.

Flight No.	Date / time (UTC)	Rocket, Configuration	Launch site	Payload	Payload mass	Orbit	User	Launch outcome
E1	10 August 1979	Satellite Launch Vehicle	SLV Launch Pad	Rohini Technology Payload^[4]	35 kg	Low Earth	ISRO
Faulty valve caused vehicle to crash into the Bay of Bengal 317 seconds after launch.
E2	18 July 1980	Satellite Launch Vehicle	SLV Launch Pad	Rohini RS-1	35 kg	Low Earth	ISRO
It was the first satellite successfully launched by the indigenous launch vehicle SLV. It provided data on the fourth stage of SLV.
D1	31 May 1981	Satellite Launch Vehicle	SLV Launch Pad	Rohini RS-D1	38 kg	Low Earth	ISRO
Orbit too low. Decayed after 9 days^[5]
D2	17 April 1983	Satellite Launch Vehicle	SLV Launch Pad	Rohini RS-D2	41.5 kg	Low Earth	ISRO
Earth Observation satellite

Launch statistics

Decade-wise summary of SLV launches:

Decade	Successful	Partial success	Failure	Total
1970s	0	0	1	1
1980s	2	1	0	3
Total	2	1	1	4

See also

• Comparison of orbital launchers families
• Timeline of artificial satellites and space probes

References

• https://web.archive.org/web/20071009040815/http://www.bharat-rakshak.com/SPACE/space-launchers-slv.html

Notes and References

1. Web site: Launch Vehicles. Department of Space, Government of India. 19 January 2014. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20140201215831/http://dos.gov.in/launchvehicles.aspx. 1 February 2014.
2. Web site: SLV. isro.gov.in. 2015-09-05. 29 May 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170529133357/http://www.isro.gov.in/launchers/slv. dead.
3. Web site: First Successful Launch of SLV-3 - Silver Jubilee. ISRO. 11 February 2019. 12 November 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201112000426/https://www.isro.gov.in/sites/default/files/flipping_book/58-SI-Jul-Sep-05/files/assets/common/downloads/publication.pdf. dead.
4. Web site: Rohini Technology Payload . 28 December 2014 . 31 July 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170731195814/http://www.isro.gov.in/Spacecraft/rtp-1 . dead .
5. Web site: TS Subramanian. Silver jubilee of the first successful SLV-3. Frontiline. 8 February 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180208012252/http://www.frontline.in/static/html/fl2217/stories/20050826002609000.htm. 8 February 2018.