After Breaking The World Record ISRO Setting Its Eyes On Future Projects
As India looks to grab a larger slice of the lucrative commercial space market, ISRO hits a splendid century in space on 15th Feb, Wednesday. ISRO sets world records of launching 104 satellites at one go, from its workhorse rocket PSLV-C37, from Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.
India’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, in its thirty ninth flight (PSLV-C37),launched the 714 kg Cartosat-2 series satellite for earth observation and 103 co-passenger satellites together weighing about 664 kg at lift-off into a 505 km polar Sun Synchronous Orbit (SSO). PSLV-C37 was launched from the First Launch Pad (FLP) of Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR, Sriharikota. It was the sixteenth flight of PSLV in ‘XL’ configuration (with the use of solid strap-on motors).
The co-passenger satellites comprised of 101 nano satellites, one each from Israel, Kazakhstan, The Netherlands, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and 96 from United States of America (USA), as well as two Nano satellites from India. The total weight of all the satellites carried onboard PSLV-C37 is about 1378 kg.
PSLV-C37 also carried two ISRO Nano satellites (INS-1A and INS-1B), as co-passenger satellites. These two satellites carried a total of four different payloads from Space Applications Centre (SAC) and Laboratory for Electro Optics Systems (LEOS) of ISRO for conducting various experiments.
The 101 International customer Nano satellites were being launched as part of the commercial arrangements between Antrix Corporation Limited (Antrix), a Government of India company under Department of Space (DOS), the commercial arm of ISRO and the International customers. It is estimated that Space agency will redeem half the total cost of this project from foreign parties, thanks to the foreign capsules mounted on its workhorse rocket PSLV-C37.
What next?
After setting up the world record ISRO has set its eyes on future projects. These include paying a visit to Mars once more and also to Venus.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley gave the department of space a 23% increase in its budget. Under the space sciences section, the budget mentions provisions “for Mars Orbiter Mission II and Mission to Venus”.
The second mission to Mars is planned for in 2021-2022 timeframe and as per existing plans it may well involve putting a robot on the surface of the Red Planet.
While the first mission to Mars in 2013 was a purely Indian project, the French space agency wants to collaborate in making the Mars rover.
In fact on a visit to India this month, Michael M Watkins, director of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory of NASA, said they would be keen to at least put a telematics module so NASA’s rovers and the Indian satellites are able to talk to each other.
The second Indian mission to Mars is likely to be all about good science since the first one had a nationalistic streak on it in trying to beat China to the orbit of Mars which the Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) did magnificently.
India’s maiden mission to Venus, the second planet of the solar system, is in all probability going to be a modest orbiter mission.
Watkins said a mission to Venus is very-very worthwhile as so little is understood about that planet and NASA would definitely be willing to partner in India’s maiden voyage to Venus.
Towards that, NASA and ISRO have already initiated talks this month on trying to jointly undertake studies on using electrical propulsion for powering this mission.
Former ISRO chairman says, “India should be part of this global adventure and exploring Venus and Mars is very worthwhile since humans definitely need another habitation beyond Earth.”
Leaving no stones unturned ISRO have its hands full with upcoming projects and their ambitions.
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By
Prankur garg
