INDIA SETS A WORLD SPACE RECORD
In a dramatic breakthrough, India’s four stage space workhorse Polar Satellite Launch
Vehicle (PSLV), after a smooth takeoff from the Satish Dhawan Space Center (SDSC)
in Sriharikota island on the sunny morning of April 28 successfully placed in orbit as
many as ten satellites in one go and in the process created a sort of world space record.
Though sometime last year, a Russian launch vehicle had launched as many as 13
satellites in one mission, no one is sure as to how many of them went in the right orbit.
Moreover the total payload of the satellites on PSLV was 823 kilograms while the
Russian craft’s was only 295 kg. PSLV carried eight satellites from abroad.
As it is, in just about 15 minutes after the blast off the core alone version of the PSLV
had accomplished multiple launches. On earlier three occasions, PSLV had carried out
multiple launches involving both Indian and foreign satellites.
The 690 kg Cartosat-2A featuring an imaging system with a resolution of better than
one meter was the major payload onboard this 13th flight of PSLV. In addition, PSLV
launched an Indian experimental remote sensing satellite IMS1 along with eight nano
satellites belonging to the foreign universities.
According to ISRO, the launch of PSLV was a milestone for ISRO as it again proved the
versatility and reliability of the launch vehicles and its ability to put multiple payloads into
a variety of orbits. Moments after the launch, a beaming ISRO Chairman had observed
“this is a memorable occasion for ISRO and India. We have set a record of launching
ten satellites into their orbit using a single vehicle. Very few contries have done it. We
have shown the world that we can do multiple launches in a precise manner.
By all means this was a complex and challenging mission since the launch vehicle was
required to deliver all the satellites in orbit in a sequential fashion to avoid collision.
However it is for the third time that ISRO had deployed a core alone version of PSLV
weighing 230 tonnes as against the standard configuration weight of 295kg.
The Indian made advanced mapping satellite weighing 690kg was the major payload on
board the PSLV. It has a lifespan of five years. This is the fifth time that PSLV has
launched foreign satellites successfully.
-DR. NAVRAJ SINGH SANDHU, www.navraj@gmail.com
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