In pics: A busy year for ISRO with several rocket launches

 | Updated: Dec 21, 2018, 03:58 PM IST

ISRO made the country proud this year as well, with the launching of many successful satellites. The year started with the launch of 31 satellites in a single flight and ended with the launch of  GSAT-7A Communication Satellite. 

PSLV-C40

ISRO’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, in its forty-second flight, successfully launched the 710 kg Cartosat-2 Series Remote Sensing Satellite along with 30 co-passenger satellites on January 12, 2018, from Satish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR, Sriharikota. 

This flight is designated as PSLV-C40. The lift-off of PSLV-C40 occurred at 0929 hrs (9:29 am) IST from the First Launch Pad.  After a flight lasting 16 minutes 37 seconds, the satellites achieved the polar Sun Synchronous Orbit of  503 km inclined at an angle of 97.55 degrees to the equator.

In the succeeding seven minutes, Cartosat-2 series satellite, INS-1C and 28 customer satellites successfully separated from the PSLV in a predetermined sequence.

The fourth stage of PSLV-C40 fired twice for short durations to achieve a polar orbit of 365 km height in which India’s Microsat successfully separated. 

(Photograph:AFP)

GSAT-6A

India's Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV-F08) successfully launched GSAT-6A Satellite into Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) on 29 March 2018.

The launch of GSLV was its twelfth and took place from the Second Launch Pad at Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR, Sriharikota, the spaceport of India.

This was the fifth consecutive success achieved by GSLV carrying indigenously developed Cryogenic Upper Stage. GSAT-6A is a communication satellite built by ISRO to provide mobile communication services through multibeam coverage.  For this, it is equipped with S and C band transponders. 

(Photograph:AFP)

GSAT-29

India’s GSAT-29 communication satellite was successfully launched by the second developmental flight of Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle MarkIII (GSLV MkIII-D2) on 14 November 2018 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR, Sriharikota.

GSAT-29 is a multiband, multi-beam communication satellite, intended to serve as testbed for several new and critical technologies.

Its Ku-band and Ka-band payloads are configured to cater to the communication requirements of users including those from remote areas especially from Jammu & Kashmir and North-Eastern regions of India.

(Photograph:AFP)

ISRO

The Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C42) of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully launched: two satellites NovaSAR and S1-4 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR, Sriharikota on 16 September 2018. The satellites belong to UK-based Surrey Satellite Technology Limited (SSTL), which has a contract with Antrix Corporation Ltd, the commercial arm of ISRO.

 NovaSAR carries S-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) and an Automatic Identification Receiver payloads.  The satellite applications include forestry mapping, land use and ice cover monitoring, flood and disaster monitoring and maritime missions. It will be operated from SSTL’s Spacecraft Operations Centre in Guildford, UK.

S1-4 is a high-resolution earth observation satellite meant for surveying resources, environment monitoring, urban management and disaster monitoring. 

(Photograph:AFP)
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GSAT-11

Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) heaviest and most-advanced high throughput communication satellite GSAT-11 was successfully launched from the Spaceport in French Guiana on 5 December 2018.

The 5854-kg GSAT-11 was launched with an aim to provide high data rate connectivity to users of Indian mainland and islands through 32 user beams in Ku-band and 8 hub beams in Ka-band.

GSAT-11 was launched to act as a forerunner to all future high throughput communication satellites. 

(Photograph:Others)