ISRO chief K. Sivan on Wednesday said, “India is ready to launch a heavy communication satellite GSAT-30 from Kourou space center in French Guiana on January 17, onboard an Ariane-5 rocket of the European Space Agency (Arianespace).”
The launch of GSAT-30 from Kourou space center is the first satellite for India to launch in 2020. This is to add capacity and strengthen the satellite for providing a communication link to state-run and private service providers.
GSAT-31 was launched by the Paris based Arianespace on February 6, 2019. It was launched with a 1-2K bus structure to provide communication services for 15 years in Ku-band from Geostationary orbit.
“We are planning to have 25 launches this year, which includes Aditya-L1 satellite, which is planned to be inserted in a halo orbit around the Lagrangian point (L1), that is about 1.5 million km from the earth.”
Aditya is designed to study the Solar corona, which is the outermost layer of the sun. It extends to thousands of kilometers around the sun’s disc. The temperature in Corona is more than a million degrees Kelvin temperature. This temperature is much larger than the temperature at the disc, which is around 6,000K.
Aditya will also research the Chromosphere (ultra-violent) and the particle flux that is emanating from the sun and reaching the L1 orbit. The magnetometer payload is used to measure the variation in the magnetic field strength at the halo around the Lagrangian point.
Other launches that are to be conducted during the year 2020 include SSLV (Small Satellite Launch Vehicle to place comparatively smaller satellites (500kg and less) in the lower orbit of Earth, GSAT-20 satellite, GSLV with 4-meter ogive payload fairing (heat shield), Indian Data Relay Satellite System and Xposat, and NavIC with indigenous atomic clocks.
Sivan said, “During 2019, ISRO has launched 6 launch vehicle and 7 satellite missions. The 50th launch of PSLV was also marked this year.“
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