PSLV Successfully Launches Four Satellites

DEXTER'S BLOG'S

January 10, 2007

In its tenth flight conducted from Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR, Sriharikota, today (January 10, 2007), ISRO’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, PSLV-C7, successfully launched four satellites -- India’s CARTOSAT-2 and Space capsule Recovery Experiment (SRE-1), Indonesia’s LAPAN-TUBSAT and Argentina’s PEHUENSAT-1 into a 635 km high polar orbit. For the first time, a Dual Launch Adopter (DLA) was used in PSLV to accommodate two primary satellites in tandem. After the final count down, PSLV-C7 lifted off from the first launch pad at SDSC SHAR, at 9.23 am with the ignition of the core first stage and four of the six strap-on motors. The remaining two strap-on motors were ignited at 25 sec after lift-off. The important flight events included the separation of the ground-lit strap-on motors, separation of air-lit strap-on motors and the first stage, ignition of the second stage, separation of the heatshield at about 121 km altitude after the vehicle had cleared the dense atmosphere, second stage separation, third stage ignition, third stage separation, fourth stage ignition and fourth stage cut-off. The 680 kg main payload, CARTOSAT-2, mounted over DLA, was the first satellite to be injected into orbit at 981.3 sec after lift-off at an altitude of 639 km. About 45 sec later, DLA with the 6 kg PEHUENSAT-1 mounted on it, was separated. 120 sec later, the 550 kg Space capsule Recovery Experiment (SRE-1) mounted inside DLA was separated and finally, 190 sec later, the 56 kg LAPAN-TUBSAT, mounted on the equipment bay of PSLV fourth stage was separated. Click here to read about more interesting facts. Ganesh.KB