ISRO’s GSLV MkIII Successfully Launches GSAT-29
ISRO’s Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark III (GSLV MkIII-D2) successfully placed the GSAT-29 communication satellite in Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) on Wednesday
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) achieved another feather in its cap after the GSAT-29 communication satellite was successfully launched by the second developmental flight of Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark III (GSLV MkIII-D2).
GSLV MkIII-D2 lifted off from the Second Launch Pad of Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota, at 17:08 hours (IST) on Wednesday, carrying the 3423-kg GSAT-29 satellite. Around 17 minutes into the flight, the GSLV MkIII-D2 launch vehicle injected the GSAT-29 into the Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO).
Once the satellite was placed in orbit, ISRO’s Master Control Facility at Hassan assumed control of the satellite. Three orbit raising manoeuvres are planned in the next few days to position the satellite in Geostationary Orbit at its designated location.
The GSAT-29 is a multiband, multi-beam satellite carrying Ku-band and Ka-band payloads which are specially configured to cater to the communication requirements of users including those from remote areas especially in Jammu & Kashmir and North-Eastern regions of India.
The GSAT-29 also has a Q/V-Band communication payload onboard which is intended to demonstrate future high throughput satellite system technologies. A Geo High Resolution Camera onboard is tasked with high resolution imaging. Also, an Optical Communication Payload on GSAT-29 is set to exhibit data transmission at a very high rate through an optical communication link.
Developed by ISRO, the GSLV MkIII-D2 is a is a three-stage heavy lift launch vehicle which has two massive boosters with solid propellant as part of the first stage. The core with liquid propellant powers the second stage and a cryogenic engine completes the final stage.
ISRO Chairman K. Sivan congratulated the entire staff of ISRO for achieving this milestone. He declared that developmental flight stage of the GSLV Mark III was over and that the launch vehicle was now ‘Operational’.
The ISRO Chief also announced that Chandrayaan-2 and Gaganyaan missions will be launched by GSLV MARK III. The success of GSLV MkIII-D2 is another step towards India achieving self-reliance in launching heavier satellites.