CHENNAI, Mar 27:
The stage is all set for the launch of India’s fourth navigation satellite IRNSS-1D by PSLV-C27 at 1719 hrs tomorrow evening from the spaceport of Sriharikota, about 100 km here.
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) sources here said the 59-and-a-half hour countdown, which began at 0549 hrs yesterday morning, was progressing smoothly. “The countdown operations are progressing normally. Propellant filling operation of the second stage of PSLV-C27 will be initiated by midnight of today,” the Space Agency said. Propellant filling operations for the fourth stage was completed last night.
The launch would take place from the Second launch pad tomorrow evening.
The fourth satellite of IRNSS Constellation, IRNSS-1D, is one among the seven satellites slated to be launched to provide navigational services to the region. The first three satellites in the IRNSS series were launched from Sriharikota on July 1, 2013, April 4 and October 16 last year respectively.
The satellite will help augmenting the satellite based navigation system of India which is currently under development. The navigational system so developed will be a regional one targeted towards South Asia. The satellite will provide navigation, tracking and mapping services. The launch mission was earlier scheduled for March 9, but was deferred due to a technical snag.
“During the integrated electrical checks of the launch vehicle along with the satellite after the closure of heat shield on March 3, an anomaly was observed in one of the telemetry transmitters of the satellite,” ISRO said. The telemetry transmitters were now replaced and the mission would take place tomorrow.
With a mission life of ten years, the configuration of IRNSS-1D, weighing 1425 kg, would be similar to that of its three predecessors and it was realised in less than four month after the launch of IRNSS-1C.
This would be the 29th mission of PSLV, which has so far completed 28 successive successful missions. As in the previous three IRNSS missions, PSLV-C27 would use ‘XL’ version of PSLV.
This was the eighth time ‘XL’ configuration would be flown, the earlier seven being PSLV-C11/Chandrayaan-1, PSLV-C17/GSAT-12, PSLV-C19/RISAT-1, PSLV-C22/IRNSS-1A, PSLV-C25/Mars Orbiter Spacecraft, PSLV-C24/IRNSS-1B AND PSLV-C26/IRNSS-1C missions. The 44.4 m tall PSLV will have a total lift off mass of 320 tonnes. The four stage vehicle would have solid propellants in the first and third stage and liquid propellants in the second and fourth stage.
About 20 minutes after the lift off, the IRNSS-1D would get separated from the launch vehicle and injected into a sub Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit at an apogee of 20,650 km and a perigee of 284 km with an inclination of 19.2 deg to the equator. After injection into this preliminary orbit, the two solar panels of the satellites would be automatically deployed in quick succession and the Master Control Facility at Hassan would take control of the satellite and perform the initial orbit raising manoeuvres to finally place it in the circular geostationary orbit as its designated location.
The IRNSS system would provide two types of services — Standard Positioning Service, which is provided to all the users, and Restricted Service that is an encrypted service provided only to authorised users. (UNI)
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