Former ISRO chairman K Sivan said the second spaceport has been a project that both the Indian government and the Tamil Nadu government have keenly been working on.

The project to build a second spaceport is meant to launch smaller rockets, such as India's upcoming rocket the SSLV (Small Satellite Launch Vehicle), in an efficient and effective manner from Kulasekarapattinam in the Tuticorin district.

Dr K Sivan, the former chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), has revealed that 1,200 acres of land in southern Tamil Nadu state have been acquired and handed over to the Indian space agency for the construction of the country's second spaceport.

Sivan said the second spaceport has been a project that both the Indian government and the Tamil Nadu government have keenly been working on.

The project to build a second spaceport is meant to launch smaller rockets, such as India's upcoming rocket the SSLV (Small Satellite Launch Vehicle), in an efficient and effective manner from Kulasekarapattinam in the Tuticorin district.

Addressing the media in Coimbatore, where he had presided over a college convocation, Sivan said that the second spaceport project required 2,233 acres of land and that the work was underway to acquire the remaining portion.

The former chairman expressed hope that the remaining acquisition could be completed in about two months, following which the construction work would commence.

Explaining the benefits of having a second spaceport, which is further down south from the existing one at Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh, Sivan mentioned a complex manoeuvre that rockets would have to undertake when launched from Sriharikota.

Simply put, when rockets are launched into polar orbit (to circle the earth along the poles) from Sriharikota, the rockets will have to fly towards the South Pole. However, this would also mean overflying Sri Lankan landmass, thus giving rise to the danger of rocket debris falling on the island.

However, this step (diverting the rocket towards the southeast to avoid overflying Sri Lanka) expends a considerable amount of fuel, thus affecting the efficiency of the launch.

While this loss in efficiency is negligible in large rockets like the 320-ton PSLV, it would significantly impact the 110-ton SSLV, thus reducing the payload it can carry.

From the new launch port, small rockets need not take a diversion, they can fly straight southwards and perform the mission at best efficiency.

In addition to this, Sivan also said that the new spaceport would generate jobs and economic activity in the region and for the local population.

According to ISRO, the newly developed solid booster stage (SS1) was tested recently for the new launch vehicle SSLV. This successful test has given the Indian space agency sufficient confidence to proceed with the first developmental flight of SSLV (SSLV-D1) which is scheduled in May 2022.

The remaining stages of SSLV, namely SS2 & SS3, have successfully undergone necessary ground tests and are ready for integration, ISRO said.

However, until the new spaceport for small rockets is fully ready, ISRO would have to expend extra fuel, compromise on rocket performance, efficiency and launch of the SSLV from Sriharikota.