Mahabalipuram: At the Thiruvidandhai beach near Mahabalipuram, in the ‘Rumi Twin’ twin rocket project jointly developed by Space Zone India and the Martin Group, the Rumi-1 rocket was successfully launched into the sky at 7:40 a.m. yesterday. The Rumi-2 rocket was not launched due to technical reasons. Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar took part in the event.
In Thaiyur, Chengalpattu district, the company ‘SpaceZone India’ is being run by young scientist Anand Mekkalingam. As part of private space technology research, the ‘Rumi Twin Mission’ was designed as an effort to develop and launch two rockets in a single project. Research has been carried out for the past two years for this purpose. The advice of Mylswamy Annadurai, former director of the Chandrayaan project, was also included in this effort.
Under this project, two rockets, Rumi-1 and Rumi-2, were developed. Made using hybrid propulsion technology, they also have a restart capability. Each of these rockets, which are 3.1 meters long, 164 millimeters in diameter, and weigh 35 kilograms, were reported to have been developed to carry 100 satellites.
With ISRO’s permission, arrangements were made for the launch event at the Thiruvidanthai beach. Considering the presence of the Kalpakkam nuclear power plant near Mamallapuram, the launch site was shifted to Thiruvidanthai for security reasons. The rocket’s operations were monitored by computer from a private campus on the ECR. Governor R. N. Ravi attended the event and congratulated young scientist Anandh Megalingam.
Mayilsamy Annadurai, Martin Group directors Leema Rose Martin and Jose Charles Martin, and former Sri Lankan minister Senthil Thondaiman, among others, took part in the event. More than 2,000 students and teachers from various states, including Tamil Nadu, participated. In an effort to advance Tamil Nadu’s contribution to private space research, the Rumi-1 rocket of the twin rocket project was successfully launched. Due to technical reasons, the Rumi-2 rocket was not launched.
