India successfully launches first privately made rocket

India successfully launched its first privately developed rocket, the Vikram-S, on Friday, a milestone in the country’s effort to create a commercial space industry and to compete on cost.
The 545-kg rocket, developed by space startup Skyroot, took off from the Indian space agency’s launch site near Chennai and hit a peak altitude of 89.5 kilometers (km).
The company said, the rocket has the capability of reaching Mach 5 – five times the speed of sound – and carrying a payload of 83 kg to an altitude of 100 kilometers.
The Skyroot team had set a target of 80 km for its first launch, a benchmark some agencies define as the frontier of space. The Karman line – set by an international aeronautics body as defining the boundary between the Earth’s atmosphere and space – is at 100 km altitude.
Video footage showed the rocket taking off from the space centre, leaving a plume of smoke and fire in its trail. Officials said, it splashed down in the Bay of Bengal about 5 minutes after launch.