Sunday, September 27, 2015

Countdown Start to ISRO PSLV-C30 launch



The 50-hour countdown for the September 28 launch of PSLV-C30 carrying ASTROSAT satellite for the first dedicated Indian astronomy mission aimed at studying celestial objects has begun, ISRO said. The countdown activity of PSLV-C30/ASTROSAT Mission started at 8 am on Saturday, ISRO said.

PSLV-C30 carrying ASTROSAT along with six other co-passengers, one satellite each from Indonesia and Canada, and four nano satellites from the US is scheduled for launch on September 28,2015(Monday) at 10 am from the space port of Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh.

Mission Readiness Review (MRR) committee and Launch Authorisation Board (LAB) that met on Friday had cleared the launch of PSLV-C30.

Commenting on the launch, ISRO Chairman AS Kiran Kumar had recently said, "What it means for India is this: it is one of the first scientific missions which will be available to the Indian researcher community as an observation opportunity.


This is a starting point for such things." ASTROSAT is India's first dedicated multi-wavelength space observatory. This scientific satellite mission endeavors for a more detailed understanding of our universe.


India will cross the half-century milestone on Monday once it successfully injects the six foreign satellites into their intended orbit. India has so far launched 45 foreign satellites for a fee. 

In 2008, ISRO had launched 10 satellites in one go including Indias Cartosate-2A satellite. Now, ISRO will be launching seven satellites for the third time in its history. 

The PSLV will carry a total payload of 1,631 kg during this mission. Just over 22 minutes into the flight, the rocket will eject ASTROSAT at an altitude of 650 kms above the earth. Soon after, six other satellites will be put into orbit and the whole mission will come to an end in just over 25 minutes. ASTROSAT, with a life span of five years, will observe the universe through optical, ultraviolet, low and high energy X-ray components of the electromagnetic spectrum, whereas most other scientific satellites are capable of observing through a narrow wavelength band, the agency said.

The Indonesian 76 kg LAPAN-A2 is a micro-satellite from the National Institute of Aeronautics and Space, meant for providing maritime surveillance using automatic identification system (AIS), supporting Indonesian radio amateur communities for disaster mitigation and carrying out earth surveillance using video and digital camera. 

The 14-kg NLS-14 (Ev9) of Space Flight Laboratory, University of Toronto Institute for Advanced Studies, is also a maritime monitoring Canadian nano satellite using the next generation AIS. The remaining four LEMUR nano satellites from Spire Global Inc., San Francisco, US, are non-visual remote sensing satellites, focusing primarily on global maritime intelligence through vessel tracking via AIS and high fidelity weather forecasting using GPS radio occultation technology, the ISRO said.






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