NEW DELHI: The Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) on Sunday said the two satellites were moved back to a safe distance after a trial attempt to reach up to 15 meters and further to 3 meters was completed.
The space body said the “docking process will be done after analysing data further”.
Isro’s final docking mechanism involves a delicate “hugging” action.
“With a constant velocity of about 10 millimetres per second, the chaser satellite will go and enter into the target satellite. The latches will be released, and clamps on both sides will try to grab each of the satellites” URSC director M Sankaran explained.
Once they hold each other together, the ring extended on the chaser satellite will be retracted so that the target satellite will be pulled toward the chaser satellite, and the two will become a single unit.
Once docked, the satellites will demonstrate power transfer capabilities, with electricity flowing from one satellite to the other to power a heater, confirming a successful connection. The combined unit will then be controlled by a single satellite’s control system, demonstrating technology crucial for future space station operations, including India’s planned Bharati Antriksh station.
Earlier on Saturday, the two Space Docking Experiment (SpaDeX) satellites achieved a distance of 230m from the distance of 1.5km.
The two Space Docking Experiment (SpaDeX) satellites that Isro was hoping to unite early Thursday were drifted too far apart late Wednesday, causing a second postponement of the final procedure in three days.
After the launch on December 30, Isro has been preparing for the docking, which requires multiple steps/stages, each of which was monitored from the ground and given a go-ahead before proceeding to the next.
On January 6, a day before the first docking attempt was scheduled, Isro had found that the docking process requires further validation through ground simulations based on an abort scenario it identified on the day. And the docking was rescheduled for January 9.
Docking in space is a complex process and so far, only three other countries — the US, Russia and China — have mastered it.