The nation should see 10 space missions in the next 12 months, according to Dr K. Radhakrishnan, Chairman of ISRO and Secretary, Department of Space. “We have lined the 10 up through September 2013, besides the ambitious Mars orbiter that may also take place by then,” said Dr. Radhakrishnan after inaugurating a two-yearly space industry exposition, Bengaluru Space Exhibition 2012,. ISRO, flush from commercial launch of France’s SPOT 6 aboard the PSLV and upbeat on the upcoming GSat-10 launch on September 21, can now handle at least 10 to 12 missions a year, he added. The September 9 PSLV launch was its milestone 100th mission. The ISRO chief said the first 20 missions took 13 years; the next 20 were done over 11 years, but post-2000, 20 missions have needed just six and four years. In 2010-11, space scientists completed 18 missions. Communications satellite GSat-10 is waiting in Kourou, French Guiana, to be put in orbit on September 21 aboard the European Ariane-5 launch vehicle. GSat-10 weighs 3.4 tonnes — which is far beyond the current Indian launcher capability. It has 30 transponders, which would expand the availability of satellite capacity for government and domestic private users. On December 12, ISRO plans to launch the 103rd mission, the Indo-French satellite SARAL, on a PSLV rocket from Sriharikota.
Source: The Hindu
Leave Your Comment