With a new deal related to ISRO’s planned Venus Orbiter Mission (VOM), Sweden and India have deepened their long-standing space cooperation. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen were present at the European Round Table for Industry when the news was made. 

Sweden has stated that it will work with ISRO on the Venus Ionospheric and Solar Wind particle AnalySer (VISWAS) instrument for the mission. A Swedish neutrals analyzer and an Indian plasma analyzer will be combined in the payload. 

Kristersson highlighted the collaboration, noting that Sweden and India had collaborated on space research since the 1980s and expressed delight in being a part of India’s expedition to Venus. 

The Union Cabinet approved the Venus Orbiter Mission, sometimes called Shukrayaan, in 2024. It would carry 19 scientific payloads, some of which were created through international cooperation with Sweden, Germany, and Russia. The mission is anticipated to be launched by ISRO no early than March 2028. 

The project intends to boost India’s aspirations for deep-space exploration by investigating Venus’ atmosphere, ionosphere, and solar wind interactions. 

Source – News9 Live