Chinmaya IAS Academy – Current Affairs Chinmaya IAS Academy – Current Affairs
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Heaviest satellite to be carried on indigenous rocket
Amid concerns of Cyclone Gaja spoiling the launch of the country’s heaviest satellite to be carried on board an indigenous rocket from Indian soil, the Indian Space Research Organisation pulled off the feat to perfection on Wednesday, a crucial launch for ISRO as it prepares for an ambitious mission to put a man in space.
Contingency plans
ISRO had contingency plans for postponing the launch but kept a watch on the weather conditions. The team went ahead with the launch of the GSAT-29 on board its second heaviest developmental flight GSLV-MkIII D2 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR at Sriharikota, to clear blue skies as the plumes of smoke from the rocket left a trail in the horizon after lift-off from the second launch pad at 5.08 p.m. The GSAT-29 satellite was placed in a geo-synchronous transfer orbit about 17 minutes after launch. It will be placed in a geo-stationary orbit at its intended location after three orbit raising manoeuvres over the next few days.
New technologies
The communication satellite, weighing 3,423 kg, “is a multiband, multi-beam communication satellite, intended to serve as test bed for new and critical technologies,” according to ISRO. “The first operational mission of this vehicle (GSLV-Mk III) is going to be none other than Chandrayaan-II mission, which is going to take place in January next year. In addition to this one, this fantastic vehicle is going to carry a human to space three years from now. Kudos to this excellent, reliant and simple launcher of India,” ISRO chairman K. Sivan said.
