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By:

Commodore S.L. Deshmukh

31 October 2024 at 8:30:19 am

The Detonation Race Is On

Rotating detonation engines could redefine propulsion in the near future, and India cannot afford to be a bystander For more than a century, the basic architecture of the jet and rocket engine has remained remarkably resilient. Fuel is burned, gases expand and turbines, compressors or other components turn that energy into thrust. Now, a different idea is beginning to move from laboratories towards operational propulsion: the rotating detonation engine (RDE). It replaces conventional...

The Detonation Race Is On

Rotating detonation engines could redefine propulsion in the near future, and India cannot afford to be a bystander For more than a century, the basic architecture of the jet and rocket engine has remained remarkably resilient. Fuel is burned, gases expand and turbines, compressors or other components turn that energy into thrust. Now, a different idea is beginning to move from laboratories towards operational propulsion: the rotating detonation engine (RDE). It replaces conventional combustion with a continuously travelling supersonic detonation wave, promising greater efficiency in a smaller and mechanically simpler package. If propulsion is a contest between how much energy can be extracted from fuel and how little machinery is required to do it, RDEs have an intriguing advantage. An RDE works inside an annular, or ring-shaped, combustion chamber. Fuel and oxidiser are injected into the chamber and ignited. Instead of a conventional flame moving relatively slowly through the mixture, a detonation wave races around the chamber at supersonic speed. The wave compresses and ignites fresh fuel as it travels, creating a self-sustaining cycle. The resulting high-temperature gases are expelled axially, generating continuous thrust. Improving Fuel Efficiency That is fundamentally different from the combustion process used by traditional engines. Conventional gas-turbine engines operating on the Brayton cycle rely on subsonic deflagration - a rapid burning process in which the flame front travels through the combustible mixture at less than the speed of sound. RDEs generally operate on the Humphrey cycle, using pressure-gain combustion to extract more useful energy from the chemical reaction before the gases are expelled. Detonation-based combustion has the potential to improve fuel efficiency by as much as 25 percent compared with conventional engines. RDEs can also dispense with some of the heavy and complicated moving machinery associated with traditional propulsion systems. That creates the possibility of engines that are smaller, lighter and easier to manufacture. For missiles and rockets, where every kilogram matters, such advantages are particularly valuable. The appeal extends beyond efficiency. A continuously propagating detonation wave can provide steady thrust while eliminating the need for a conventional turbine-compressor architecture. The result could be a propulsion system suited to hypersonic missiles, high-speed aircraft, space vehicles and other platforms where compactness and performance matter as much as raw power. That said, maintaining a smooth and stable detonation wave is extraordinarily demanding. Fuel injection must be precisely controlled and the geometry of the combustion chamber carefully engineered. The number, spacing and shape of injectors can determine whether the detonation remains stable or breaks down. Inside the chamber, extreme temperatures and pressures place enormous demands on engine walls, requiring advanced cooling systems and high-performance materials. These engineering problems explain why the RDE revolution has been promising for years without yet becoming routine technology. The challenge is no longer simply demonstrating that a detonation can be sustained. It is turning that phenomenon into a reliable, durable and flight-ready propulsion system. Production Race The United States is pushing ahead on several fronts. NASA has successfully tested full-scale RDEs producing more than 5,800 pounds of thrust and is planning to raise that figure to 10,000 pounds for potential lunar and Mars missions. Pratt & Whitney, part of RTX, has conducted extensive RDE testing for military applications, exploring high-speed and long-range propulsion with a simpler architecture. DARPA is pursuing RDE technology for hypersonic standoff missiles under its Gambit programme, while L3Harris has conducted long-duration, full-scale tests aimed at advancing next-generation missile propulsion. The international competition is broader still. Japan’s JAXA, GE Aerospace and Chinese institutions have been pursuing RDE applications in rockets and hybrid air-breathing engines, including systems intended for hypersonic flight. China, in particular, is treating the technology as part of its broader push towards high-speed aerospace and military systems. Researchers at Tsinghua University introduced a hybrid design in 2024 combining a ramjet with a rotating rotor compressor, intended to improve starting at lower speeds and enhance performance during flight. In 2025, scientists at the Beijing Power Machinery Research Institute reportedly completed a milestone test of an RDE operating steadily for 180 seconds at Mach 6.3. Recent Chinese test engines have also reportedly incorporated specialised materials capable of tolerating internal temperatures of up to 2,500°C. For India, therefore, RDEs are no longer merely an interesting engineering experiment but are fast becoming part of the strategic propulsion race. India has already taken an important step. Defence propulsion start-up D-Propulse, incubated at IIT Madras, has demonstrated what it describes as the country’s first indigenous 5 kN air-breathing RDE coupled with an aerospike nozzle. The hot-fire demonstration was conducted at a DRDO test facility and reportedly achieved Technology Readiness Level-5 validation in the specified environment. That matters because it represents a movement from laboratory research towards an integrated propulsion prototype. D-Propulse has stated that it is targeting a flight-ready engine by December 2027. The company says its technology can deliver 15–25 percent higher thermodynamic efficiency than conventional air-breathing propulsion systems and can be produced through precision machining rather than complex turbine assemblies, potentially reducing both production costs and lead times. The applications could be considerable. Defence systems could include hypersonic missiles, air-to-air and air-to-ground weapons and compact propulsion systems for standoff strike platforms. In space, RDEs could find uses in upper-stage rocket engines, planetary landers and deep-space propulsion, where higher efficiency and lower engine mass are particularly valuable. The technology could even migrate beyond aerospace: RDE-based gas turbines could potentially generate electricity with greater thermal efficiency and lower fuel consumption. The larger significance is that propulsion technology often determines what a country can build, how far it can travel and how quickly it can respond. RDEs remain an emerging technology, and their promise should not be confused with operational maturity. But countries that solve the problems of stability, materials, cooling and reliable fuel injection first could gain an important advantage in the next generation of aerospace and defence systems. (The writer is a retired naval aviation officer and a defence and geopolitical analyst. Views personal.)

From ‘Weak Independent Woman’ to a Comic Voice

Mumbai: Sharon Verma’s journey in comedy is a story of an unlikely breakout. She was not introduced to audiences as an established star, but as a relatively new comedian who walked onto the stage of India’s Got Latent and turned a self-deprecating joke about being a “weak independent woman” into a moment audiences remembered.


Originally from Bihar and now based in Mumbai, Verma has built her identity around observational, self-aware humour. Her comedy frequently draws from everyday experiences—work, relationships, womanhood, migration and her own Bihari identity. Her appearance on the first season of India’s Got Latent in 2024 helped bring that style to a much larger audience.


Before comedy became her full-time pursuit, Verma worked in the creative industry. Her professional background includes copywriting and creative roles, including work at The Rabbit Hole and Disney+ Hotstar. Her LinkedIn profile also shows her involvement in writing and creative work for entertainment campaigns.


That background is significant because Verma’s comedy has the sensibility of someone who understands how to construct a joke as well as perform one. She moved from writing creative material behind the scenes to putting herself at the centre of the joke.


Her India’s Got Latent appearance became a turning point. The phrase “weak independent woman” became particularly associated with her comic persona: instead of presenting independence as a polished, inspirational ideal, Verma approached it with irony. The joke worked because it turned a familiar social-media phrase into something recognisably human and self-mocking. Her performance subsequently helped her gain a larger following and led to further opportunities in stand-up.


There is also something distinctive about the way Verma uses her regional identity. Being from Bihar is not simply a biographical detail in her comedy; it becomes material. She plays with stereotypes surrounding Biharis while simultaneously turning those stereotypes back on the audience. That approach has become part of the appeal of her comedy: she is willing to make herself the subject before making someone else the punchline.


Her return to India’s Got Latent in 2026 represented a neat reversal of her original trajectory. The woman who had once appeared as a contestant returned as a panellist alongside Samay Raina. The transition—from performer seeking recognition to comedian capable of holding her own in a room of established personalities—was itself a marker of how far she had come.


The latest episode also demonstrated why her quick, conversational style works. A roast exchange between Verma and Raina about their respective Bihari and Kashmiri identities went viral, with viewers particularly reacting to Verma’s final comeback. The exchange also generated criticism because it touched on sensitive questions of regional identity, migration and the displacement of Kashmiri Pandits.


Whatever one’s view of that particular joke, the moment revealed something important about Verma as a performer: she is increasingly comfortable occupying the space rather than waiting for permission to enter it. She can take a joke, return one and, crucially, make the audience feel that the exchange is happening in real time rather than following a rehearsed script.


That may ultimately be what makes Sharon Verma interesting beyond the viral clips. Her rise has not been based on a single punchline. It has been built around a recognisable comic voice—one that combines self-deprecation, regional identity, writing experience and a willingness to make herself vulnerable for a laugh.


From a creative executive writing entertainment campaigns to a comedian performing her own material, and from an India’s Got Latent contestant to a panellist, Verma’s trajectory is still unfolding. But the transition already tells a compelling story: sometimes the person who walks onto a comedy stage as a joke becomes the person audiences stay to watch.

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