SPACE

The missions ahead

IN the next few years, ISRO Satellite Centre, Bangalore, will have its hands full, building a series of satellites. Some of these will employ cutting-edge technology, rivalling counterparts elsewhere in the world.

In October, Arianespace will launch the 3,000-kg INSAT-3A from Kourou. The multi-purpose satellite will carry communications, broadcasting and meteorological payloads. It has 18 transponders for communications and broadcasting functions and six in the Ku-band. Its meteorological component has two payloads, the Very High Resolution Radiometer and a charge-coupled device camera.

In the first quarter of 2003, the second developmental flight of the Geo-synchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) will deploy GSAT-2. Dr. P.S. Goel, Director, ISRO Satellite Centre, said GSAT-2 would have a new bus, which was a new development. The "optimised 2,000 kg class spacecraft", which is almost ready, is largely meant for augmenting India's communications capabilities. The GSLV will use a Russian cryogenic upper (third) stage to deploy GSAT-2 in GTO at 36,000 km above the earth. Goel said: "We want the mission to be cost-effective. We want to use the GSLV to augment the communications capability with multiple launches. The GSLV is also a marketable commodity for smaller missions."

INSAT-3E, which will be launched later, is expected to clear all pending demands for communications requirements.

In the second quarter of 2003, the PSLV will put in orbit Resourcesat, an operational class, remote-sensing spacecraft meant to monitor land resources, land use, agriculture, water availability and so forth. Goel said: "You can map the vegetation of the whole world once in two days. It will be a useful payload for agricultural operations. It is a world-class satellite, and a complex spacecraft."

In 2005-2006, ISRO will launch Astrosat, whose imagery will help in understanding the various phenomena occurring in the universe. This will be ISRO's first dedicated science satellite. The scientific community at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai, and the Physical Research Laboratory, Ahmedabad, are working on the configuration of Astrosat's payloads. Goel said: "It is a challenging mission because Astrosat requires highly accurate pointing towards different kinds of stars." PSLVs will also launch Cartosats.