India-China Space Mission- A Comparative Study
Physicist Professor S. James Gates J. R. Says that "we are usually not very conscious about space but I still tell people, maybe even a fish is not conscious of water when it has to be in it all the time." Most of us have. The image of space in one's mind is about outer space, a place that is far away from us but in reality space is present everywhere.
According to Sir Isaac Newton, space is an empty space in the entire universe that forms an outline for everything. According to Newton, space is absolute, eternal and immutable. Nothing we do can affect the space. From falling from an apple tree to Newton's other laws, have worked so well that we still use these 'laws' from the launch of satellites to the landing of airplanes. Later Albert Einstein said that space is not a neutral and stable space, it also expands and contracts.
Today the whole world is striving for space related research. There has also been a war in 1962 between India and China, which share a border of 3500 km. Recently, China issued a statement that Indian troops have illegally tried to cross the LAC on the south bank of Pangong Lake.
For the past several days, military tension between India and China was going on in the Galvan Valley of Ladakh. The Galvan Valley disputed area near Ladakh is in Aksai Chin. The Galwan region comes under the Chusul Council of Ladakh. The Galwan Valley is located between Ladakh and Aksai Chin, from where the India-China border is very close. China has taken over the Galwan area located on the LAC in Ladakh.
The Galvan Valley extends from Ladakh on the Indian side to China's southern Xinjiang. This region is strategically important for India as it is adjacent to both Pakistan and China's Xinjiang. In order to establish a balance of power in the Indo-Pacific region, India needs to balance the power of a neighboring nation like China. For this it is necessary that India should establish its dominance in various fields such as defence, nuclear, economic and space sector. At the same time, it is also necessary to keep an eye on China's power enhancement. In this sequence, a comparative study of the space programs of India and China has been done, which proves their power-dominance.
The objective of the Indian Space Program is to achieve self-reliance in the use of space science and technology for national development.
Main area:-
Various National Applications: Telecommunications, TV Broadcasting, Satellite Communications for All India Radio
Resource survey and management by remote sensing, environmental investigation and meteorological services
Development of indigenous satellites and launch vehicles to fulfill the above objectives.
The period of space research in India happened in the 60s and ISRO (Indian Space and Research Organization) was established in 1969. ISRO has played an important role not only for the welfare of India but also in establishing India as a soft power before the world. ISRO carried out programs through satellite communication for development in the field of telecommunication, broadcasting and broadband infrastructure in the country. The major role in this was played by INSAT and GSAT satellites. Through these satellites, it has been possible to provide services like telecommunication, telemedicine television, radio, disaster management, search and rescue operations in India.
Another important role of ISRO in India has been in the field of Earth Observation. Earth observation techniques are required in India for weather forecasting, disaster management, mapping of resources and planning through geo-environment. In India, forest survey reports are also prepared by this technique. At present, more high-capacity satellites RISAT, Cartosat, RISOSAT, etc. series of satellites are being used.
The third important area is satellite based navigation. Navigational technology is used to strengthen the air services in India and improve its quality. Keeping these in mind, GAGAN (GPS-aided GEO augmented-GAGAN) program launched IRNSS (Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System) which is based on 7 satellites. These satellites are placed in the Geostationary Geosynchronous Orbit. IRNS (present name Navik-NAVIC) is very important for accurate positioning of objects and for the defense sector.
ISRO started capable launch vehicle technology with SLV (Satellite Launch Vehicle) and ASLV (Augmented Satellite Launch Vehicle). Later on, India developed PSL (Polar satellite launch vehicle) technology which proved to be a milestone for space programs. India is now working on the Mark III variant of the GSLV (Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle). GSLV's Mark III can place a payload of 3.5 MT in a geosynchronous orbit. The success of PSLV and GSLV in India has made Chandrayaan-1 and Mars mission successful in the past. Now India is working on Chandrayaan-2 and Gaganyaan program.
The Network for Indoor Object Tracking and Analysis (NETRA) is the first project of ISRO with the main objective as Space Situational Awareness (SSA). The main objective of this project is the identification of space objects threatening the security of Indian space assets, A network of observational facilities and control centers have to be established for tracking and listing. India had made Mission Shakti a success by successfully destroying a live Indian satellite by an anti-satellite missile in space. The basic objective of 'Mission Shakti' reflects India's security, economic development and India's technological progress. Thus, India became the fourth country in the world to achieve this feat after the US, Russia and China. It was developed jointly by ISRO and DRDO.
Talking about China's space programs, thus like the United States, China's space program started during the Cold War era when the world was divided into two political camps due to the desire for more or less domination. On the one hand, the United States and its Western allies and on the other the Soviet Union and their allies. Although China was not allied with the USSR, it was considered a threat by the US. On 8 October 1956, China's first rocket missile development agency - Pifles Research Institute was established by the Ministry of National Defense of China. Since its inception in the late 1950s and reforms in the early 90s, China's space program has made some very impressive achievements. The Dong Fang Hong-1 satellite was launched in 1970, which set the record for being the heaviest satellite launched into space. The launch of the FSW-O NO 1 recoverable satellite was also a major milestone for the Chinese space programme. With this, China became the third country in the world to demonstrate expertise in satellite return technology. The commissioning of the Yuanwang-1 tracking ship made China the fourth country in the world to have an ocean-going space survey ship capable of tracking ballistic missiles, satellites and spacecraft. With the launch of Shenzhou-5 in 2003, China became the third country (after the US and the former Soviet Union) to successfully send a man into space. In 2011, China began construction of the Five Hundred Meter Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope (FAST) array, the construction of which was completed in 2016. The Shenzhou 11 mission began in 2016 with its crew traveling to the Tiangag-2 space station.
The Chang'e Program was a very important step for China. With the launch of the Chang'e 1 orbiter in 2007, China became the fifth nation to successfully orbit the Moon and map its surface. The most important was the Chang'e 4 mission, which made a soft landing on the far side of the Moon for the first time in history. The Lunar Micro Ecosystem (LME) is believed to be the first experiment to test the effects of lunar gravity on living beings.
The year 2020 saw two major developments in the Chinese space program. In July 2020, China's first interplanetary mission (Tianwave-1) was launched to Mars. China's first reusable space plane launched in September. Today China is considered the third largest power in space (after Russia and the United States). China's space agency CNSA has many ambitious plans in the coming years that can make it a leading space superpower. More recently, China has become the first country in the world to launch 6G Communications Test Satellite. It is believed That this technology will be 100 times faster than 5G.
In view of China's growing space capabilities at present, India also needs to make more efforts in this direction so that the geo-political balance is maintained in the Asia-Pacific region. The role of the private sector for space in India has been limited. While NASA, the world's largest space sector institute, has also been taking help of the private sector. Although India is one of the leading countries in the field of space and satellite science, yet more effort is needed so that it can establish a balance of power with its neighboring countries like China.
