India overcame US sanctions to develop cryogenic engine

The successful launch of GSLV-D5 on Sunday, powered by an indigenous cryogenic engine, is a major milestone for the country considering the challenges Isro has had to face in developing it over the past three decades. The quest to acquire cryogenic technology faced not just technological challenges but also geopolitical sanctions. In fact, the US had at one point tried to scuttle India's Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) project. A decade before that, in December 1982, India had formed a cryogenic study team to focus …