ISRO Successfully placed 8 satellites in two different orbits
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) launched
a PSLV C-35 rocket from Sriharikota at to put eight satellites into
two different orbits.
Key facts:
- This is ISRO’s longest PSLV satellite launch mission
spread over two hours and and 15 minutes.
- The 320 tonne PSLV rocket carried 8 satellites. The
main cargo will be the 371 kg SCATSAT-1 for ocean and weather related
studies which will be placed into a 730 km polar sun synchronous orbit.
The other seven satellites will be placed in a 689 km polar orbit.
- According to ISRO, SCATSAT-1 is a continuity mission
for Oceansat-2 scatterometer to provide wind vector data products for
weather forecasting, cyclone detection and tracking services to the users.
- The satellite carries Ku-band
scatterometer similar to the one flown onboard Oceansat-2.
- On board are five foreign satellites: three from
Algeria (Alsat-1B 103kg, Alsat-2B 117kg, Alsat-1N 7kg); and one each from
Canada (NLS-19, 8kg) and the US (Pathfinder-44kg).
- The two other Indian satellites are: Pratham (10kg)
built by Indian Institute of Technology – Bombay and Pisat (5.25 kg) from
PES University, Bengaluru and its consortium.
Functions:
- The SCATSAT-1 satellite, with a life of five years,
would provide weather forecasting services through wind-vector products.
- The 10-kg PRATHAM, designed by the IIT-Bombay, would
estimate the total electron count with a resolution of 1km x 1km location
grid.
- The PISAT (5.25 kg), from PES University in
Bengaluru, would explore remote sensing applications.
- ALSAT-1B is an earth-observation satellite (103 kg),
- ALSAT-2B is a remote-sensing satellite (117 kg) and
- ALSAT-1N (7 kg) is a technology demonstrator.
