Indian rocket successfully puts into orbit vigation satellite

Sriharikota (Andhra Pradesh), April 12: India early on Thursday put into orbit vigation satellite IRNSS-1I, a part of Indian satellite vigation system vIC in copy-book style. The 1,425 kg satellite was carried into space by Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) rocket’s ‘XL’ variant. Simply put, vIC (vigation with Indian Constellation, earlier the Indian Regiol vigation Satellite System or IRNSS) is the Indian ‘GPS’. After the successful launch, Indian Space Research Organisation Chairman K. Sivan said:”I am extremely happy to announce that the PSLV has precisely injected the vigation satellite in the targetted orbit.”

At 4.04 a.m., the four stage/engine PSLV-XL rocket, standing 44.4 metres tall and weighing 321 tonnes, blasted off from the first launch pad. Just over 19 minutes into the flight, the rocket slung IRNSS-1I into the orbit from where the satellite will be taken up to its fil position at geo synchronous orbit at a height of 36,000 km.

The Rs 1,420 crore Indian satellite vigation system vIC consists of nine satellites — seven in orbit and two as substitutes. The fully operatiol system is expected to provide accurate position information service to users across the country and the region, extending up to an area of 1,500 km. One of the substitutes was the IRNSS-1H as the in IRNSS-1A’s rubidium atomic clocks, important for giving accurate positiol data, had failed. However, the IRNSS-1H satellite launch mission ended in a failure on August 31 last year. The 1,425 kg IRNSS-1I was the second satellite sent up as replacement for IRNSS-1A and the ninth of the IRNSS satellite series. Each satellite has three rubidium atomic clocks and a total of 27 clocks for the vigation satellite system (including the standby satellites) were supplied by the same vendor.

Like its other IRNSS predecessors, IRNSS-1I also carries two types of payloads for vigation and ranging. The vigation payload, operating in L5-band and S-band, will transmit vigation service sigls to the users, while the ranging payload consists of a C-band transponder, which facilitates accurate determition of the range of the satellite. IRNSS-1I also carries Corner Cube Retro Reflectors for laser ranging. vIC provides two types of services — standard positioning service and restricted service. The former is for all users while the latter is an encrypted service for only authorised users. Each satellite has a life span of 10 years.(IANS)