Unified Launch Vehicle

Unified Launch Vehicle
Function	Medium- to Heavy-lift launch vehicle
Manufacturer	Indian Space Research Organisation
Country of origin	India
Size
Mass	270,000 to 700,000 kg (600,000 to 1,540,000 lb)
Stages	2
Capacity
Payload to LEO
Mass	6 × S-13 : 4,500 kg (9,900 lb); 2 × S-60 : 10,000 kg (22,000 lb); 2 × S-139 : 12,000 kg (26,000 lb); 2 × S-200 : 15,000 kg (33,000 lb); HLV (Variant) : 20,000 kg (44,000 lb)[citation needed]; HLV (Variant) : 41,300 kg (91,100 lb)
Payload to GTO
Mass	6 × S-13 : 1,500 kg (3,300 lb); 2 × S-60 : 3,000 kg (6,600 lb); 2 × S-139 : 4,500 kg (9,900 lb); 2 × S-200 : 6,000 kg (13,000 lb); HLV (Variant) : 10,000 kg (22,000 lb); HLV (Variant) : 16,300 kg (35,900 lb)
Launch history
First flight	After 2022
Boosters – S-13
No. boosters	6
Length	12 m (39 ft)
Diameter	1 m (3 ft 3 in)
Propellant mass	13,000 kg (29,000 lb)
Motor	S-13
Thrust	716 kN (161,000 lbf)
Burn time	80 seconds
Propellant	HTPB
Boosters – S-60
No. boosters	2
Propellant mass	60,000 kg (130,000 lb)
Motor	S-60
Propellant	HTPB
Boosters – S-139
No. boosters	2
Length	20.1 m (66 ft)
Diameter	2.8 m (9 ft 2 in)
Propellant mass	138,200 kg (304,700 lb)
Motor	S-139
Thrust	4,700 kN (1,100,000 lbf)
Burn time	100 seconds
Propellant	HTPB
Boosters – S-200
No. boosters	2
Length	25 m (82 ft)
Diameter	3.2 m (10 ft)
Propellant mass	207,000 kg (456,000 lb)
Motor	S-200
Thrust	4,658 kN (1,047,000 lbf) each
Total thrust	9,316 kN (2,094,000 lbf)
Specific impulse	274.5 (vacuum)
Burn time	130 sec
Propellant	HTPB
Core stage – SC-160
Propellant mass	160,000 kg (350,000 lb)
Engines	SCE-200
Thrust	SL: 1,820 kN (410,000 lbf); Vac: 2,030 kN (460,000 lbf)
Specific impulse	SL: 299 s (2.93 km/s); Vac: 335 s (3.29 km/s)
Burn time	259 sec
Propellant	Kerosene / LOX
Upper stage – C-30
Propellant mass	30,000 kg (66,000 lb)
Engines	CE-20
Thrust	200 kN (45,000 lbf)
Specific impulse	443 s (4.34 km/s)
Burn time	650 sec
Propellant	LH2 / LOX

The Unified Launch Vehicle (ULV) is a family of modular expendable launch vehicles, currently under development by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). This vehicle is designed to replace the PSLV, GSLV Mk I/II and GSLV Mk III with a single family of launchers.^[1]

The design may include a heavy-lift variant dubbed HLV, consisting of the SC-160 stage and two solid rocket boosters, as well as a super heavy-lift variant called SHLV with a cluster stage of five SCE-200 engines.^[1]^[12] As SCE-200 will only fly after the successful completion of the Gaganyaan program, the launcher will not fly before 2022.^[4]

Design[]

As of May 2013, based on ISRO data, the design comprised a common core and upper stage, with four different booster sizes.^[13] All four versions of the boosters are solid motors, with at least three versions reusing current motors from the PSLV, GSLV Mk I/II and LVM3.^[5] The core, known as the SC160 (Semi-Cryogenic stage with 160 tonnes of propellant, in the ISRO nomenclature), would have 160,000 kg (350,000 lb) of Kerosene / LOX propellant and be powered by a single SCE-200 rocket engine. The upper stage, known as the C30 (Cryogenic stage with 30 tonnes of propellant) would have 30,000 kg (66,000 lb) of LH2 / LOX propellant and be powered by a single CE-20 engine.^[1]^[12]

The four booster options are:

6 × S-13, slightly larger than the S-12 on PSLV, to burn longer;
2 × S-60, which appears to be a new solid motor development;
2 × S-139, which is the first stage of PSLV and GSLV Mk I/II;
2 × S-200, like on the LVM3.

In September 2021, in a virtual event being conducted by ISRO, the presentation mentioned a fleet about configuration of a family of five rockets capable of lifting from 4.9 tonnes to 16 tonnes to geostationary transfer orbit (GTO). The presentation mentioned about ongoing development of a new semi-cryogenic stage namely SC120 and upgraded cryogenic stage namely C32. The configurations displayed about more powerful engines stages; SC-400 semi-cryogenic stage, C27 cryogenic stage and S2250 solid rocket boosters.^[14]

Variants[]

Heavy Lift Launch Vehicle (HLV-Variant):-

A potential heavy-lift variant (HLV) of the unified launcher capable of placing up to 10 ton class of spacecraft into Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit would include:^[1]^[15]^[12]

A larger dual S-250 solid strap-on boosters as compared to the S-200 boosters used in LVM3;
A L-400 semi-cryogenic core stage, with 400 tonnes of propellant, using a cluster of five SCE-200 engines;
A L-27 cryogenic third stage, with 27 tonnes of propellant, using CE-20 engine.

Comparable rockets[]

Angara (rocket family)
Ariane 6
Delta IV Heavy
H3
Long March (rocket family)
Proton rocket
Vulcan Centaur

References[]

^ Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Brügge, Norbert. "ULV (LMV3-SC)". B14643.de. Retrieved 14 August 2015.
^ "ULV". www.b14643.de.
^ "ULV". www.b14643.de.
^ Jump up to: ^a ^b "Episode 90 – An update on ISRO's activities with S Somanath and R Umamaheshwaran". AstrotalkUK. 24 October 2019. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
^ Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f "ISRO Unified Launch Vehicle (ULV)". NASAspaceflight. 3 May 2013. Retrieved 14 August 2015.
^ Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Brügge, Norbert. "Propulsion ULV". B14643.de. Retrieved 14 August 2015.
^ "PSLV". ISRO. Retrieved 14 August 2015.
^ Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e PSLV-C28 DMC3 Mission Brochure (PDF). ISRO. Retrieved 14 August 2015.
^ Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c ^d GSLV-D5 GSAT-14 Mission Brochure (PDF). ISRO. Retrieved 14 August 2015.
^ "GSLV". ISRO. Retrieved 14 August 2015.
^ Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g "LVM3". ISRO. Retrieved 14 August 2015.
^ Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c Brügge, Norbert. "LVM3, ULV & HLV". B14643.de. Retrieved 14 August 2015.
^ "ISRO Unified Launch Vehicle Update". Antariksh Space. 3 May 2013. Retrieved 25 May 2016.
^ Siddarth MP (14 September 2021). "ISRO's new series of heavy-lift rockets to carry between 5-16 tonnes to GTO". WION. Retrieved 15 September 2021.
^ ""Indigenous Development of Materials for Space Programme" By Dr A. S. Kiran Kumar Presentation Slides. Indian Institute Of Science iisc.ernet.in Date: 21 August 2015".

External links[]

[b14643-ulvdesc-1] Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Brügge, Norbert. "ULV (LMV3-SC)". B14643.de. Retrieved 14 August 2015.

[2] "ULV". www.b14643.de.

[3] "ULV". www.b14643.de.

[AstrotalkUK-4] Jump up to: ^a ^b "Episode 90 – An update on ISRO's activities with S Somanath and R Umamaheshwaran". AstrotalkUK. 24 October 2019. Retrieved 30 October 2019.

[nsf-msg1047204-5] Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f "ISRO Unified Launch Vehicle (ULV)". NASAspaceflight. 3 May 2013. Retrieved 14 August 2015.

[b14643-ulvprop-6] Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Brügge, Norbert. "Propulsion ULV". B14643.de. Retrieved 14 August 2015.

[isro-pslv-7] "PSLV". ISRO. Retrieved 14 August 2015.

[isrobr-pslv-c28-8] Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e PSLV-C28 DMC3 Mission Brochure (PDF). ISRO. Retrieved 14 August 2015.

[isrobr-gslv-d5-9] Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c ^d GSLV-D5 GSAT-14 Mission Brochure (PDF). ISRO. Retrieved 14 August 2015.

[isro-gslv-10] "GSLV". ISRO. Retrieved 14 August 2015.

[isro-lvm3-11] Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g "LVM3". ISRO. Retrieved 14 August 2015.

[b14643-ulvvers-12] Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c Brügge, Norbert. "LVM3, ULV & HLV". B14643.de. Retrieved 14 August 2015.

[antariksh-13] "ISRO Unified Launch Vehicle Update". Antariksh Space. 3 May 2013. Retrieved 25 May 2016.

[WIONSep21-14] Siddarth MP (14 September 2021). "ISRO's new series of heavy-lift rockets to carry between 5-16 tonnes to GTO". WION. Retrieved 15 September 2021.

[15] ""Indigenous Development of Materials for Space Programme" By Dr A. S. Kiran Kumar Presentation Slides. Indian Institute Of Science iisc.ernet.in Date: 21 August 2015".

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show v t Orbital launch systems
List of orbital launch systems Comparison of orbital launch systems
Current	Angara A5 Antares 230+ Ariane 5 Atlas V Ceres-1 Delta IV Heavy Electron Epsilon Falcon 9 Block 5 Falcon Heavy Firefly Alpha^† GSLV Mk II Mk III H-IIA Hyperbola-1 Jielong 1 Kuaizhou 1 1A 11^† Kaituozhe 2 LauncherOne Long March 2C 2D 2F 3A 3B/E 3C 4B 4C 5 5B 6 7 7A 8 11 Minotaur I IV V C OS-M1^† Pegasus XL Proton-M PSLV Qased Rocket 3^† Safir Shavit Simorgh^† Soyuz-2 2.1a / STA 2.1b / STB 2-1v Unha Vega Zenit 3SL 3SLB 3F Zhuque-1^†
In development	Agnibaan Amur Angara 1.2 Antariksh - 1 Ariane 6 Bloostar Chetak Cyclone-4M Eris Firefly Beta H3 Hyperbola-2 Irtysh Kuaizhou 21 31 Long March 921 rocket 9 Miura 5 Neutron New Glenn New Line 1 Nuri OS-M2 OS-M4 Orbex Prime Phoenix Red Dwarf SLV-1T SLV-VT SLS Block 1 Block 1B Block 2 Soyuz-7 SSLV Starship Terran 1 R Vega C Vega E Vikram - I Vikram - II Vikram - III Vulcan Zero Zhuque-2
Retired	Antares 110 120 130^† 230 Ariane 1 2 3 4 ASLV Athena I II Atlas B D E/F G H I II III LV-3B SLV-3 Able Agena Centaur Black Arrow Conestoga^† Delta A B C D E G J L M N 0100 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 II III IV Diamant Dnepr Energia Europa^† Falcon 1 Falcon 9 v1.0 v1.1 v1.2 "Full Thrust" Feng Bao 1 GSLV Mk I H-I H-II H-IIB Juno I Juno II Kaituozhe-1 Kosmos 1 2I 3 3M Lambda 4S Long March 1 1D^† 2A 2E 3 3B 4A Mu 4S 3C 3H 3S 3SII V N1^† N-I N-II Naro-1 Paektusan Pilot-2^† R-7 Luna Molniya M L Polyot Soyuz original FG L M U U2 Soyuz/Vostok Sputnik Voskhod Vostok L K 2 2M R-29 Shtil' Volna^† Saturn I IB V Scout SLV Space Shuttle SPARK^† Sparta SS-520 Start-1 Thor Able Ablestar Agena Burner Delta DSV-2U Thorad-Agena Titan II GLV IIIA IIIB IIIC IIID IIIE 34D 23G CT-3 IV Tsyklon original 2 3 Universal Rocket UR-500 Proton Proton-K Rokot Strela Vanguard VLS-1^† Zenit 2 2M
Classes	Sounding rocket Small-lift launch vehicle Medium-lift launch vehicle Heavy-lift launch vehicle Super heavy-lift launch vehicle
This Template lists historical, current, and future space rockets that at least once attempted (but not necessarily succeeded in) an orbital launch or that are planned to attempt such a launch in the future Symbol ^† indicates past or current rockets that attempted orbital launches but never succeeded (never did or has yet to perform a successful orbital launch)

show v t Indian space programme
Department of Space (DoS)
Organisations	Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Antrix Corporation Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST) Indian Institute of Remote Sensing (IIRS) Laboratory for Electro-Optics Systems (LEOS) National Atmospheric Research Laboratory (NARL) New Space India Limited (NSIL) Physical Research Laboratory (PRL) Development and Educational Communication Unit (DECU) Integrated Space Cell Defence Space Agency Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN–SPACe)
Programmes	Bhaskara GAGAN GSAT INSAT IRNSS IRS Cartosat RISAT Rohini SROSS Chandrayaan Human Spaceflight Programme
Satellites	APPLE Aryabhata HAMSAT IMS-1 Megha-Tropiques NISAR SARAL South Asia Satellite SRE SRE II Kalpana-1 CARE
Space observatories	Astrosat Aditya-L1 (planned) XPoSat (planned) AstroSat-2 (proposed)
Lunar and planetary spacecraft	Chandrayaan-1 Chandrayaan-2 Chandrayaan-3 (planned, 2022) Lunar Polar Exploration Mission (proposed) Mars Orbiter Mission Mars Orbiter Mission 2 (proposed) Shukrayaan-1 (proposed)
Crewed spacecraft	Gaganyaan (Under development)
Rockets	Engines CE-7.5 CE-20 Vikas Orbital SLV ASLV PSLV Launches GSLV Mk I Mk II Launches Mk III Suborbital Rohini ATV Concepts ULV Under development RLV Technology Demonstration Programme RLV-TD HEX SSLV SCE-200
Facilities	Indian Deep Space Network (IDSN) ISRO Satellite Centre (ISAC) ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC) Master Control Facility (MCF) Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station (TERLS) ISRO Satellite Integration and Testing Establishment (ISITE) Vikram Sarabhai Space Center (VSSC) Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre (LPSC) ISRO Propulsion Complex Human Space Flight Centre (HSFC)
Legislation and policy	Space Activities Bill Draft Spacecom Policy 2020 SpaceRP Policy 2020 Technology Transfer Policy and Guidelines
Private companies	Pixxel Skyroot Aerospace Satellize AgniKul Cosmos Dhruva Space Bellatrix Aerospace TeamIndus
Related	SAGA-220 (supercomputer) RESPOND
List of Indian satellites List of Satish Dhawan Space Centre launches List of ISRO missions List of ISRO chairpersons