News Highlights:
- Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is scheduled to launch the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle C55 (PSLV-C55) mission on April 22 with Singapore’s TeLEOS-2.
- This is a dedicated commercial mission through NSIL, with TeLEOS-2 as the primary satellite and Lumelite-4 as a co-passenger satellite.
TeLEOS-2:
- About:
- It is a Singaporean Earth Observation satellite built by ST Electronics (Satellite Systems).
- It is designed to capture satellite imagery in all-weather and round-the-clock conditions.
- The 750 kg satellite will be launched into a Low Earth Orbit.
- It carries a made-in-Singapore Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) capable of providing 1 m resolution data.
- It will be equipped with a 500 GB onboard recorder for recording the data captured and a high-speed 800 Mbps downlink.
- Applications:
- It will provide high-resolution imagery for various applications such as disaster management, resource monitoring, and environmental monitoring.
Earth Observation Satellites (EOS):
- About:
- An EOS or Earth remote sensing satellite is a satellite used or designed for Earth observation (EO) from orbit.
- It includes spy satellites and similar ones intended for non-military uses such as environmental monitoring, meteorology, cartography, and others.
- The most common type is Earth-imaging satellites that take satellite images analogous to aerial photographs.
- Some EOS may perform remote sensing without forming pictures, such as in GNSS radio occultation.
Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV):
- About:
- PSLV (Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle) is an Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) developed expendable launch system.
- It belongs to the medium-lift launcher class, with a range of orbits, including the Geo Synchronous Transfer Orbit, Lower Earth Orbit, and Polar Sun Synchronous Orbit.
- PSLV activities are managed from the Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota, which is situated on India’s east coast.
- Description:
- PSLV has a four-stage system comprising a combination of solid and liquid-fuelled rocket stages.
- The first stage, located at the very bottom, is solid-fueled and is surrounded by six strap-on solid rocket boosters.
- The second stage is liquid-fueled, whereas the third stage is solid-fueled.
- The launcher uses a liquid propellant to boost into orbit during the fourth stage.
- The flagship rocket can carry a payload of 1,050 kg into Geo Synchronous Transfer Orbit and 1,600 kg into Polar Sun Synchronous Orbit.
- Successful Launches:
- As of September 2015, PSLV had successfully launched 87 satellites into various orbits, including 51 foreign and 36 Indian spacecraft.
- PSLV’s notable launches include Chandrayaan-1 (India’s first moon probe), Mangalyaan-1 (India’s first Mars orbiter mission), and Astrosat (First Indian dedicated multi-wavelength space observatory).
Pic Courtesy: Freepik
Content Source: The Hindu