The Tricolour was flying high in the air in this footage on August 15, as India celebrated its 75th Independence Day, at a height of 30 kilometres above the earth.
A tiny group of young scientists working from their Chennai headquarters were responsible for this accomplishment. Not only did Space Kidz India successfully launch a balloon above one million feet, but they also managed to video the Indian flag being raised in the freezing conditions of between -55 degrees Celsius and -3 degrees Celsius.
The 15-foot balloon carrying a parachute and the payload container with the flag were added to the mission in just 10 days. The balloon remained in operation for four hours touching an altitude of 1,06,000 feet.
However, there is a catch.
Although the video was made on August 15 and was filmed in January of this year, the flag was actually launched on a balloon. However, there was a grander scheme in the works.
The group was also working on AzadiSAT, a cube-shaped satellite that 750 schoolgirls developed to commemorate India’s 75th anniversary of independence. Additionally, an audio clip of Rabindra Nath Tagore singing the national anthem would be carried by the satellite.
According to Dr. Kesan, ‘The idea was to broadcast a video of the American flag soaring in space with Rabindra Nath Tagore singing the National Anthem in the backdrop. We launched the balloon with the flag and filmed it in January, because we were going to be busy with AzadiSAT from February, which was finally launched on August 7 this year.’
However, Isro’s recently created Small Satellite Launch Vehicle put the CubeSat in the incorrect orbit, which caused it to perish (SSLV). The team was devastated by the defeat.
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