Bengaluru: Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is getting back to launch activities at Sriharikota spaceport following the launch of geo imaging satellite GISAT-1 onboard GSLV-F10 rocket on August 12. This will be the second launch of the Bengaluru-based space agency, in Covid-19 hit 2021.
The PSLV-C51 mission was successfully launched by ISRO on February 28 with Brazil’s Amazonia-1 earth observation satellite and 18 co-passengers, including some built by students.
In March last year, GISAT-1 was scheduled to launch from Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh’s Nellore district, about 100 km north of Chennai, but the launch was delayed one day prior to blast-off for technical reasons.
Consequently, the launch was postponed due to Covid-19-induced lockdown which affected normal work. Originally, it was scheduled for March 28 this year, but a ‘minor issue’ with the satellite forced its postponement.
The campaign was expected to be launched in April and then in May, but it was not executed as planned due to the lockdown prompted by the second wave of the pandemic.
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‘We have tentatively planned the GSLV-F10 launch on August 12, at 05.43 am, subject to weather conditions,’ an ISRO official told the media today.
As per ISRO, GISAT-1 will allow near real-time observations of the Indian subcontinent under cloud-free conditions at frequent intervals. GISAT-1 will travel into a Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit utilizing GSLV-F10, then be positioned into a final geostationary orbit, approximately 36,000 km above Earth’s equator, with the assistance of its onboard propulsion.
Earth observation satellites will provide the country with near-real-time images of its borders and will enable quick detection of natural disasters. In the view of experts, positioning a high-technology earth observation satellite in geostationary orbit is an advantage.
An official in the Department of Space said, ‘It will be a game-changer for India.’
‘With its high-resolution cameras onboard, this satellite will allow the country to continuously monitor its oceans and landmasses, especially its borders,’ says an official.
Earlier, ISRO had described the mission objectives as providing regular imaging of the large area region of interest near-real-time. It would be helpful in monitoring natural disasters, episodic events and short-term events.
As a third goal, spectral signatures of agriculture, forestry, mineralogy, disaster warnings, cloud properties, snow and glaciers, and oceanography will be collected.
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