The 27-hour countdown began on Tuesday for ISRO's historic 100th mission, which involves the launch of a navigation satellite aboard a GSLV rocket, according to sources within the space agency. This mission marks the first for ISRO Chairman V Narayanan, who took office on January 13.
The Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV), featuring an indigenous cryogenic upper stage in its 17th flight, is set to launch the navigation satellite NVS-02 at 6:23 AM on January 29 from the second launch pad at the spaceport.
The satellite is the second in the Navigation with Indian Constellation (NavIC) series, designed to provide accurate position, velocity, and timing information to users across the Indian subcontinent and extending up to 1,500 km beyond India's borders.
Multiple sources indicated to PTI that the countdown officially commenced at 2:53 AM on Tuesday. Standing 50.9 meters tall, the GSLV-F15 follows the successful GSLV-F12 mission, which launched the NVS-01 satellite, the first of the second-generation satellites, on May 29, 2023.
NavIC consists of five second-generation satellites, namely NVS-01, NVS-02, NVS-03, NVS-04, and NVS-05, which are intended to enhance the existing NavIC base layer constellation and ensure continuity of services.
The NVS-02 satellite, designed and developed by the U R Satellite Centre, weighs approximately 2,250 kg and is equipped with navigation payloads in L1, L5, and S bands, as well as a ranging payload in C-band, similar to its predecessor NVS-01.
ISRO stated that the satellite's key applications would include terrestrial, aerial, and maritime navigation, precision agriculture, fleet management, location-based services for mobile devices, orbit determination for satellites, IoT-based applications, and providing emergency and timing services.
In other news, the Maha Kumbh Mela, noted as the world's largest religious gathering, was recently photographed from the International Space Station (ISS). Officials announced that these images were shared by NASA astronaut Don Pettit on the social media platform X. Taken on Sunday, the images show the illuminated banks of the Ganges River, highlighting the event's notable activity.
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Inputs from PTI