PSLV
C-56 - SCI & TECH
News:
ISRO’s PSLV-C56 puts 7
satellites in orbit; four more missions this year
What's
in the news?
●
The Indian Space Research Organisation
(ISRO) successfully launched the PSLV-C56 carrying Singapore’s DS-SAR satellite
and six other satellites
Key
takeaways:
●
PSLV-C56 carrying seven satellites
including the primary satellite DS-SAR and six co-passengers has been
successfully placed in the right orbit.
DS-SAR
Satellite:
●
It is developed under a partnership
between DSTA (representing the
Government of Singapore) and ST Engineering.
●
It will be used to support the satellite
imagery requirements of various agencies within the Government of Singapore.
●
ST Engineering will use it for multi-modal
and higher responsiveness imagery and geospatial services for their commercial
customers.
●
It carries a Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) payload developed by Israel
Aerospace Industries (IAI).
●
This allows the DS-SAR to provide for
all-weather day and night coverage and is capable of imaging at 1m resolution
at full polarimetry.
Other
Satellites:
Along with DS-SAR, the
PSLV-C56 will carry
●
VELOX-AM:
A
23 kg technology demonstration microsatellite.
●
ARCADE:
Atmospheric Coupling and Dynamics Explorer (ARCADE), an experimental satellite.
●
SCOOB-II:
A 3U Nanosatellite flying a technology demonstrator payload;
●
NuLIoN:
An advanced 3U Nanosatellite enabling seamless IoT connectivity in both urban
and remote locations;
●
Galassia-2:
A
3U Nanosatellite that will be orbiting at low earth orbit.
●
ORB-12
STRIDER: Satellite is developed under an International
collaboration.
Go
back to basics:
Launch
Vehicles:
SLV:
●
In the space transportation domain, the
commissioning of the Satellite Launch Vehicle-3 (SLV-3) project in the early
1970s was the first indigenous experimental satellite launch vehicle.
●
As a four
stage, all solid, launch vehicle, SLV-3 had its successful launch in July
1980, thrusting India into the select league of six countries with the
capability to launch satellites on their own.
●
The ASLV- Augmented Satellite Launch
Vehicle project, in the early 1980s, was the next step of evolution in launch
vehicle technology.
PSLV:
●
PSLV is third generation launch vehicle
indigenously designed and developed by ISRO.
●
It is one of the world's most reliable and
versatile workhorse (launch vehicles) with over 50 consecutively successful
missions.
●
It is a four-stage launch vehicle and first Indian rocket to be equipped
with liquid stages.
●
It can take up to 1,750 kg of payload to
Sun-Synchronous Polar Orbits (SSPO) of 600 km altitude and payload of 1,425 kg
to Geosynchronous and Geostationary orbits.
●
Four Stages:
○
The uppermost stage or fourth stage of
PSLV comprises two Earth storable liquid
engines.
○
The third stage is a solid rocket motor that provides upper stages high thrust after the
atmospheric phase of the launch.
○
Second stage of PSLV uses an Earth
storable liquid rocket engine, known
as Vikas engine, developed by Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre.
○
The first stage uses the S139 solid rocket
motor that is augmented by 6 solid
strap-on boosters.
GSLV:
●
GSLV is an expendable space launch vehicle
designed, developed, and operated by the ISRO to launch satellites and other
space objects into Geosynchronous Transfer Orbits.
●
It is a three-stage vehicle with a lift-off mass of 420 tonnes.
●
Stages in GSLV:
○
The first stage comprises an S139 solid booster with 138-tonne propellant
and four liquid strap-on motors, with 40-tonne propellant.
○
The second stage is a liquid engine carrying 40-tonne of liquid propellant.
○
The third stage is the indigenously built Cryogenic Upper Stage (CUS) carrying
15-tonne of cryogenic propellants.
SSLV:
●
The Small Satellites Launching Vehicles
(SSLVs) used for commercial launching of
small satellites is under incubation.
●
It is a small-lift launch vehicle being
developed by the ISRO with payload capacity to deliver:
○
600 kg to Low Earth Orbit (500 km)
○
300 kg to Sun-synchronous Orbit (500 km)
●
It would help launch small satellites,
with the capability to support multiple orbital drop-offs.
●
In future a dedicated launch pad in
Sriharikota called Small Satellite Launch Complex (SSLC) will be set up.