ISRO to launch Cartosat-2 along with 30 nano-satellites

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Cartosat-2 -indianbureaucracy
Cartosat-2 -indianbureaucracy

The national space agency ISRO is all geared up for the 40th flight of its highly reliable polar satellite launch vehicle PSLV C-38 this morning. The rocket carrying India’s ‘Cartosat-2 Series’ satellite as the principal payload and 30 other nano-satellites on-board is set to lift off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikotta at 9.29 am.

The 30 nano-satellites include 29 belonging to foreign customers from 14 countries and one domestic payload of a private educational institution. The principal payload Cartosat-2 Series weighs 712 kg, whereas all the 30 nano-satellites together weigh 243 kg, taking the total weight to 955 kg.

To give enough thrust to carry them to a 505 km sun-synchronous orbit, the rocket is being armed with solid strap-on motors. This is the second launch mission for the ISRO this month, coming close on the heels of the recent successful test-flight of the 4-ton class launch vehicle GSLV Mark-III. The countdown for today’s launch is at a crucial stage now, with just few hours to go for the ignition of the PSLV.

Reports that the decks are cleared for PSLV C38/Cartosat-2 Series mission from the first launch pad of the spaceport at Sriharikotta. The last minute system checks through remote means are going on in the first launch pad of the spaceport, to ensure a flawless flight this time as well.

The launch mission is set to be completed in over 23 minutes since lift off, with Cartosat-2 Series satellite being the first to separate from it, followed by the customer satellites one by one. The Cartosat-2 Series is a remote sensing satellite, containing sophisticated high resolution cameras with a mission life of five years.

The data of Cartosat-2 Series satellites provide vital inputs for the urban and rural planning, coastal land use regulation, road network monitoring and geographical information system applications.

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