In the early hours of Monday, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) launched a Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV)-C52 with two smaller co-passenger satellites from the First Launch Pad of Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh.
Carrying earth observation satellite EOS-04 along with two co-passenger pay loads, this launch marked India's first space mission of 2022.
The launch vehicle is designed to orbit EOS-04, weighing 1,710 kg into a sun synchronous polar orbit of 529 km.
EOS-04, with a mission life of ten years, is a Radar Imaging Satellite designed to provide high quality images under all weather conditions for applications such as Agriculture, Forestry and Plantations, Soil Moisture and Hydrology and Flood Mapping.
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The two smaller co-passenger satellites include a student satellite (INSPIREsat-1) from Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST) in association with Laboratory of Atmospheric and Space Physics at University of Colorado, Boulder. It is also contributed by NTU, Singapore and NCU, Taiwan. The other is a technology demonstrator satellite (INS-2TD) from ISRO, which is a precursor to the India-Bhutan Joint Satellite (INS-2B).
This was the 80th launch vehicle mission from SDSC SHAR, Sriharikota; 54th flight of PSLV; and the 23rd flight of PSLV in XL configuration (6 strap-on motors).