The Sriharikota launch pad. Photo credit: ISROThe Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) today (29 December) announced that it would launch 31 satellites, including the Cartosat-2 series earth observation space craft, in a single mission onboard its Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) mission on 10 January.
This will be the first PSLV mission after the launch of navigation satellite IRNSS-1H in August that went unsuccessfully.
The Mission Readiness Review Committee (MRRC) and Launch Authorisation Board (LAB) is scheduled to meet in the coming days would take the final call.
PSLV-C40 will take off from the spaceport in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.
The mission would combine 28 nano satellites from other countries, including Finland and the United States, one micro and nano satellite from India along with the Cartosat.
On 31 August 31, India's mission to launch a backup navigation satellite IRNSS-1H on board the PSLV-C39 ended in a failure when a technical glitch occurred during the final leg following a perfect launch.
ISRO had then said that the heat shield did not separate during the final leg of the launch sequence resulting in the IRNSS-1H getting stuck in the fourth stage of the rocket.
The Cartosat-2 series satellite launch is a follow-on mission with a primary objective of providing high resolution scene specific spot imageries. It will carry panchromatic and multi-spectral cameras operating in a time delay integration mode that would be capable of delivering high resolution data.
This would be the third satellite in the Cartosat-2 series. In February, the PSLV-C37 launched the first Cartosat-2 series satellite along with 103 satellites in a single flight. Of these, 101 were cube satellites.
In June, the launch vehicle launched the second one along with 30 other satellites, marking the thirty-ninth consecutive successful mission of the PSLV.
An Appeal...
Dear Reader,
As you are no doubt aware, Swarajya is a media product that is directly dependent on support from its readers in the form of subscriptions. We do not have the muscle and backing of a large media conglomerate nor are we playing for the large advertisement sweep-stake.
Our business model is you and your subscription. And in challenging times like these, we need your support now more than ever.
We deliver over 10 - 15 high quality articles with expert insights and views. From 7AM in the morning to 10PM late night we operate to ensure you, the reader, get to see what is just right.
Becoming a Patron or a subscriber for as little as Rs 1200/year is the best way you can support our efforts.