ISRO postpones launch of ESA's Proba-3 satellite due to anomaly, reschedules for tomorrow

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has postponed the launch of the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Proba-3 satellite, originally scheduled for December 4, 2024, at 4:08 PM IST. The delay occurred after an anomaly was detected in the Proba-3 spacecraft, prompting ISRO to reschedule the launch to December 5 at 4:12 PM IST.

This mission, part of the PSLV-C59 project, is a commercial collaboration between ESA and ISRO through NewSpace India Limited (NSIL). The Proba-3 satellite, a groundbreaking initiative to study the Sun’s corona, marks a significant step in international cooperation and scientific exploration.

Mission Details: Proba-3 and PSLV-C59
Proba-3, hailed as the world's first mission designed to study the Sun’s outer atmosphere, consists of two satellites: the Coronagraph Spacecraft (CSC) and the Occulter Spacecraft (OSC). These satellites will operate in a tandem configuration, maintaining a formation 150 meters apart to function as a single large solar coronagraph. The Occulter spacecraft will block the Sun's disk, enabling uninterrupted observation of the Sun's faint corona by the Coronagraph spacecraft.

The mission is powered by ISRO's trusted Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), a workhorse for India’s satellite launches. The two satellites will initially be launched together in a stacked configuration and then separate to maintain their unique orbital formation.

How Proba-3 Works
After reaching its target orbit, the Proba-3 spacecraft will demonstrate precision formation flying, a first-of-its-kind achievement. The two satellites will remain aligned for around six hours per orbit, creating a 150-meter-long solar coronagraph to study the Sun’s corona closer to the solar rim than ever before.