ISRO to launch student-built satellite Kalamsat today. All you need to know

Source: ISRO.

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is set to launch imaging satellite Microsat-R and Kalamsat, a small communication satellite developed by students and Space Kidz India, from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota at 11:37 pm today.

The satellites will be carried by a new variant of India's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) rocket: PSLV-C44. After launching the two satellites, the fourth stage of PSLV-C44 will be converted into a platform for experiments in space. With this, PSLV-C44 mission will become the first in the world to use the rocket for a space experiment platform.

"In this mission, the fourth stage (PS4) of PSLV-C44 will be moved to higher circular orbit so as to establish an orbital platform for carrying out experiments," ISRO said, adding that if successful, Kalamsat will be the first satellite to use the PSLV's fourth stage (PS4) as an orbital platform for carrying out experiments.

#ISROMissions #PSLVC44 to launch #Kalamsat and #MicrosatR from Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota on January 24. Kalamsat is a student payload while Microsat-R is an imaging satellite.

Stay tuned for updates. pic.twitter.com/cbYzkR4s7n

— ISRO (@isro) January 16, 2019

According to the mission launch brochure, Kalamsat, is a communication satellite with a life span of two months. The satellite, which costs about Rs 12 lakh, is the world's lightest and first ever 3D-printed satellite.

The nanosatellite, named after former Indian President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, was built by an Indian high school student team led by Rifath Sharook, an 18-year-old from the Tamil Nadu town of Pallapatti, according to report by India Today. 

However, the launch brochure does not give any other detail about Kalamsat's payload.

The countdown for the launch of PSLV-C44 mission started on January 23 at 19:37 hours (IST), according to an ISRO mission update.

#ISROMissions #PSLVC44 sits pretty on the launchpad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota under the watchful eyes of the #Moon, ahead of its midnight launch tomorrow (Jan 24), carrying #Kalamsat and #MicrosatR.

Updates will continue. pic.twitter.com/DA1fatQA5U

— ISRO (@isro) January 23, 2019

The main passenger in today's launch of PSLV is a 740-kg satellite called Microsat-R that will be used to take high-resolution photos of the Earth for defence research.

The 44.4-metre-long PSLV weighs 260 tonne and attempts to take both satellites into orbit on its 46th launch.

In its last mission, on November 29 last year, ISRO successfully injected India's earth observation satellite HysIS onboard PSLV C43 into its designated orbit.