India’s most advanced communication satellite was successfully launched into space through Elon Musk’s SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket which lifted off from Cape Canaveral in Florida on Tuesday.
The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) launched its satellite on the Falcon 9 rocket, that set off on its 396th flight, the satellite began a 34-minute journey into outer space, aiming to deliver broadband services to remote areas. It will also enable Internet availability in airplanes across the Indian region.
Whenever international flights enter the Indian air space, they have to switch off the Internet as India does not allow this service. But recently, India amended rules to permit in-flight internet access over India.
Liftoff of GSAT-N2! pic.twitter.com/4JqOrQINzE
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ISRO’s launch vehicle Mark-3 can put 4,000 kg into a geostationary transfer orbit, however, as GSAT-N2 weighs 4,700 kg, the space agency is using SpaceX’s launch vehicle. This marks ISRO’s first commercial launch using SpaceX. GSAT-N2 (GSAT-20) is a Ka-band high-throughput communication satellite of NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), under the Department of Space and the commercial arm of ISRO. The satellite features multiple spot beams and aims to support a large subscriber base with small user terminals.
“Launch successful,” said Radhakrishnan Durairaj, Chairman and Managing Director of New Space India Limited, the commercial arm of ISRO. Durairaj who monitored the flight from Cape Canaveral told NDTV, “GSAT 20 got a very precise orbit”.
According to India Today, with Arianespace currently lacking operational rockets and geopolitical tensions limiting options from Russia and China, SpaceX has emerged as the most viable choice for India.
ISRO had earlier said, “GSAT-N2 has a mission life of 14 years… and is equipped with 32 user beams, comprising 8 narrow spot beams over the Northeast region and 24 wide spot beams over the rest of India. These 32 beams will be supported by hub stations located within mainland India. The Ka-Band HTS communication payload provides a throughput of approximately 48 Gbps”.
