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Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will launch their first satellite of the year -- PSLV-C40/Cartosat-2 -- at 9:29 am on Friday from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.
The launcher will be a Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV). It will carry a 710-kilo Cartosat-2 satellite, along with 30 co-passenger satellites. The co-passenger satellites together will weigh 613 kg at lift-off.
Among the 30 co-passenger satellites, 3 microsatellites and 25 nanosatellites will be launched on behalf of six countries - Canada, Finland, France, Republic of Korea, the UK and the US. The rest are indigenous satellites - one microsatellite and one nanosatellite.
"When the last satellite is ejected out it will become the hundredth satellite...the first century we have done," ISRO Satellite Centre (ISAC) director M Annadurai had told PTI.
The deals between ISRO and foreign countries have recently have made it possible for the space researcher to become a prominent member in the global space market.
Even though PSLV had a mishap in its August 31 launch, it is still considered to be ISRO's reliable launch vehicle. According to the ISRO website, PSLV has not only launched Indian satellites but also 209 foreign ones in the last 23 years. In ISRO's June launch, the PSLV C-38 carried 29 nano satellites from 14 countries.
The new Cartosat-2 satellite's functioning is similar to the PSLV C-38/Cartosat-2 launch, which took place on June 23, 2017. The third launch in the Cartosat-2 series is a follow-on mission of last year's Cartosat-2 mission.
The satellite will capture images and photos of the country, which will help us update maps and the road network, among other things. It will also observe and give regular updates on weather changes in the country.
The Cartosat series of satellites, which are indigenous to India, feature panchromatic, multi-spectral cameras operating in Time Delay Integration mode. It is capable of providing high-resolution spot imagery.
This will be the first launch after the rocket expert Dr K Sivan was appointed ISRO chairman, replacing AS Kiran Kumar. K Sivan will assume office on January 14.
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