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Hassan is about 180 km northwest of the tech
hub of Bangalore.
Ariane-V of Arianespace belongs to the European
Space Agency (ESA), an international organisation
with 19-member states.
The cost of the launch was Rs.300 crore and Rs.30
crore was for satellite insurance.
The 3,093 kg (weight at lift-off) satellite was
separated from the rocket's upper stage at an
altitude of 1,800 km and fired into the intended
orbit, which is at 35,861 km apogee (away from
earth) and 258 km perigee (close to earth) with
an inclination of 2.5 degree to the equator.
"Initial checks by MCF have indicated that
the satellite's health is normal and in a three
axis stabilisation mode. Steps are underway to
fire its 440 Newton liquid apogee motor (LAM)
during the third orbit early Sunday to push it
to its geostationary orbital slot," Satish
said.
The satellite will be gradually put into the
36,000 km geosynchronous orbit over the next couple
of days and its antenna and solar panels will
be deployed.
Weighing 1,426 kg (dry mass) in space, the cuboid
shaped spacecraft has 24 high-power Ku-band transponders
as its payload for direct-to-home (DTH) services
from July 1 by state-run and private broadcasters
after its induction into the Indian satellite
(INSAT) system.
Along with the satellite, a two-channel global
positioning system (GPS) aided geo augmented navigation
(Gagan) payload will operate in L1 and L5 bands
when activated.
Over the next couple of days, the MCF will take
complete control of the satellite and conduct
the initial orbit raising manoeuvres by using
the LAM on board the spacecraft, placing it in
the circular geostationary orbit.
After this, the deployment of appendages such
as the solar panels, antennas and three axis stabilization
of the satellite will be performed.
"The satellite will be positioned at 55
degree East longitude and co-located with INSAT-3E
satellite. The designed in-orbit mission life
of the satellite is 12 years. The 24 Ku-band transponders
will augment the capacity in the INSAT system,"
Satish said.
The Gagan payload also provides the satellite
based augmented (SBAS) through which the accuracy
of the positioning information obtained from the
GPS satellite of the US is improved by a network
of ground based receivers and made available to
users in the country through the geostationary
satellites.
ISRO chairman K. Radhakrishnan, who was present
at the launch, termed the event a great moment
for the country and its space community.
"The user community is looking forward to
the activation of the 24 transponders in the INSAT
system. The successful launch is a new phase in
our communication, application and space system,"
Radhakrishnan said soon after the launch of the
successful mission.
As the 44th successful consecutive launch, the
heavy geostationary workhorse has also carried
a dedicated communication satellite for Singapore
Telecommunications Ltd. (SingTel) and Taiwan's
Chunghwa Telecom Company.
"
Coming less than one month after the previous
launch, this 44th success in a row is remarkable
and demonstrates the competence of our operational
team," said Arianespace chairman and chief
executive Jean-Yves Le Gall.
(IANS)
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