Launch Vehicle – LVM3
Rocket in simple words is a type of vehicle which is used to take spacecraft to space by producing huge amount of thrust. The principles of rocketry were tested more than 2,000 years ago, but it’s only been used in the past 70 years for space exploration. Earlier rockets were used for war but today, rockets take satellites to space, astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS), carry supplies to ISS, land on their own and are proposed to be reused. Rockets routinely take spacecraft to the Moon and other planets in our Solar system.
Here, we will learn how Rockets’ concept evolved over the time and get to know about a few of the brightest minds behind the making of rockets. We will also go through a few of the missions which paved the way to a whole new world and enhanced the capabilities of humankind.
Technical Architecture and Vehicle Configuration
The LVM3 is a massive 43.5-meter tall, three-stage launch vehicle with a gross lift-off weight of 640 tonnes. It features a 5-meter diameter payload fairing to accommodate bulky spacecraft. The vehicle’s architecture consists of two solid strap-on motors, a liquid core stage, and a high-thrust cryogenic upper stage. The Encapsulated Assembly (EA) at the top houses the spacecraft, the Payload Adaptor (PLA), and the Payload Fairing (PF).
Stage | Designation | Propellant Type | Engine / Motor | Fuel & Propellant Mass | Dimensions (Height x Diameter) |
First (Strap-ons) | S200 Solid Rocket Boosters (x2) | Solid | S200 Motor | HTPB (205 tonnes nominal) | 25 m x 3.2 m |
Second (Core) | L110 Liquid Stage | Liquid (Earth Storable) | 2 x Vikas Engines | UDMH + H₂O (115 tonnes) | 21 m x 4.0 m |
Third (Upper) | C25 Cryogenic Stage | Liquid (Cryogenic) | CE-20 Engine | LOX + LH2 (28 tonnes) | 13.5 m x 4.0 m |
Technological Milestones: The S200 solid motor, developed at the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, ranks among the largest solid boosters in the world. Furthermore, the C25 stage is powered by the fully indigenous CE-20 engine, which is India’s largest and most powerful cryogenic engine, developed by the Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre.
Strategic Significance
Standard Flight Sequence and Injection Profile
The LVM3 utilizes a unique staging sequence compared to its predecessors. The vehicle relies entirely on its massive solid boosters for initial lift-off, with the liquid core igniting mid-flight. A nominal mission profile to GTO follows a highly precise sequence:
- Lift-off (0s): The vehicle takes off with the simultaneous ignition of the two S200 solid boosters.
- Core Ignition (113s): The L110 liquid core stage is ignited during the atmospheric ascent while the S200 boosters are still firing.
- Booster Separation (137s): After burning for approximately 134 seconds, the depleted S200 motors separate from the vehicle.
- Fairing Separation (217s): At an altitude of approximately 115 km, while the L110 stage is actively firing, the payload fairing is jettisoned, exposing the spacecraft to the vacuum of space.
- Core Burnout and Cryogenic Ignition (313s): The L110 stage burns out and separates. Immediately following this, the high-thrust C25 cryogenic upper stage ignites.
- Spacecraft Injection (974s): The cryogenic stage effectively completes the orbital maneuvers, injecting the spacecraft into a highly elliptical Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) of 180 km x 36,000 km.
Operational Milestones
Launch Date | Mission Name | Payload | Remarks / Mission Type |
Dec 18, 2014 | LVM-3 / CARE | Crew module Atmospheric Re-entry Experiment (CARE) | Sub-orbital experimental flight to test the crew module for future human spaceflight. |
Jun 05, 2017 | LVM3-D1 | GSAT-19 | First developmental flight; placed a heavy communication satellite into orbit. |
Nov 14, 2018 | LVM3-D2 | GSAT-29 | Second developmental flight; successfully launched an advanced communication satellite. |
Jul 22, 2019 | LVM3-M1 | Chandrayaan-2 | First operational flight; launched India’s second lunar exploration mission. |
Oct 23, 2022 | LVM3-M2 | OneWeb Gen-1 | First dedicated commercial mission; deployed 36 broadband satellites into Low Earth Orbit (LEO). |
Mar 26, 2023 | LVM3-M3 | OneWeb Gen-1 | Second commercial mission for OneWeb; deployed another batch of 36 satellites. |
Jul 14, 2023 | LVM3-M4 | Chandrayaan-3 | Historic mission that successfully led to a soft landing on the Moon’s surface. |
Nov 02, 2025 | LVM3-M5 | CMS-03 | Deployed a heavy, next-generation communication satellite. |
Dec 24, 2025 | LVM3-M6 | Blue Bird 2 | Launched a massive commercial communications satellite into LEO. |
