Chennai, Jan. 5 -- India's upcoming Next Generation Launch Vehicle (NGLV), unofficially known as Soorya, has been conceived as a reusable and modular rocket with significantly higher payload capacity, former ISRO Chairman and Secretary, Department of Space, S. Somanath said.
According to Somanath, the NGLV was planned as an all-liquid propulsion system rather than one using solid motors.
"The engine had to be larger, newer, and capable of throttling. Because of this, the existing vendor base could not be used," he said.
The three-stage launch vehicle will use clustered LOX-methane engines for its first two stages, while the third stage will be cryogenic. In its full configuration, the rocket is expected to weigh around 1,000 tonnes at li...