INDIAN SPACE PROGRAMME – A GLIMPSE

Indian space programme started with the constitution of Indian National Committee for Space Research (INCOSPAR) in 1962 with Dr. Vikram Sarabhai as its chairman. The first launch of a small rocket from Thumba in 1963 marked the beginning of the space era in the country. Indian  Space Research Organisation (ISRO) was institutionalized in 1969 to develop space technology and its application to various national tasks. During the seventies, India undertook demonstration of space applications for communication, broadcasting and remote sensing; designed and built experimental satellites – Aryabhata, Bhaskara, APPLE and Rohini – and experimental Satellite Launch Vehicles – SLV-3 and ASLV. Today, India has established space systems that form an important element of the national infrastructure. India successfully sent its Chandrayaan-1  spacecraft to moon in November 2008 and became the fourth individual country to send a probe to the lunar surface.

National Space System

ISRO has successfully operationalised two major satellite systems namely Indian National  Satellites (INSAT) System for communication services and Indian Remote Sensing (IRS) Satellites for management of natural resources; also, Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) for launching IRS type of satellites and Geostationary Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) for launching INSAT type of satellites. Today, India has been among the world leaders in developing end-to-end infrastructure and capability in areas of both communication and remote sensing satellites technologies.

Satellite Systems

Established in 1983, INSAT system is one of the largest domestic communication satellite systems with a total of 211 communication transponders on eleven satellites INSAT-2E, INSAT-3A, 3B, 3C, 3E, GSAT-2, Edusat (GSAT- 3), INSAT-4A, 4B, 4C-R and Kalpana providing a variety of communication and meteorological services to the country. INSAT is widely used for Telecommunications, Broadcasting (TV, Radio), Business Communication, Mobile Communication, Telemedicine, Search & Rescue, Satellite Navigation System, Meteorology, etc.,

Commissioned in 1988, India has the world’s largest constellation of remote sensing satellites - nine satellites in operation – IRS-1D, IRS-P3, TES, Oceansat-1, Resourcesat-1, Cartosat-1 and Cartosat-2 & 2A and IMS-1. The data is used for several applications covering agriculture, water resources, urban development, mineral prospecting, environment, forestry, drought and flood forecasting, Ocean; Disaster Management Support and Village Resource Centres.

Launch Vehicles

India has developed and commissioned Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) and Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV). PSLV can launch 1700 kg class remote sensing satellites into a 620 km polar Sun Synchronous Orbit. It can also place a satellite weighing about 1150 kg in Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) or a 3500 kg class satellite in Low Earth Orbit. GSLV is capable of launching 2000 kg class satellites into GTO. GSLV Mark-III, to place 4000 kg class satellites in GTO, is under development.  

Today, PSLV has fourteen consecutively successful flights out of fifteen launches and placed a total of sixteen Indian satellites and sixteen foreign satellites into Polar, Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit and Low Earth Orbits.

Space technology has the vast potential for addressing a variety of socioeconomic problems of the developing countries, particularly in the areas of communication, rural development, disaster management, education and health sectors. Space technology and applications in India, have been playing enabling role to benefit the society. Space systems have thus configured to  strengthen the resolves of the country to improve the overall qualities of lives; empower the common citizen through better education, health, environment, agricultural productivity, and ultimately help to develop a resilient and more prosperous knowledge society.  

 The tele-education programme launched by ISRO, serviced by the exclusive satellite ‘EDUSAT’, is in synergy with formal education system in the country. Imparting primary, secondary, higher and technical educations, and the more required teachers’ training, are some of the services delivered under tele-education programme. Today, EDUSAT network has more than 35,000 class rooms connected to various academic institutions and universities.

Telemedicine is one of the unique applications of Space Technology for societal benefit. DOS Telemedicine programme, which started in 2001 has been connecting remote/rural/medical college hospitals and Mobile Units through INSAT and EDUSAT to major speciality hospitals in cities and towns. Presently in ISRO telemedicine network,  about 337 hospitals are provided with this facility with 280 remote/rural/district/medical college hospitals connected to 45 specialty hospitals with 12 Mobile Telemedicine units that have been established. The Mobile Telemedicine units cover the diverse areas of Ophthalmology, Cardiology, Diabetology, Mammography, general medicine, women and child health.

Combining the services offered by INSAT and IRS satellites, a new concept namely Village Resource Centre (VRC) has been established in association with NGO’s / Trusts and State / central agencies. VRC is a single window delivery mechanism for village community providing a variety of space based information, such as teleeducation; tele-medicine; information on natural resources for planning and development at local level; interactive advisories on agriculture, fisheries, land and water resources management, livestock management, etc., Nearly 500 such VRCs have been established in the country.

Space capsule Recovery Experiment (SRE-1)

Space capsule Recovery Experiment (SRE-1) is a 550 kg capsule that demonstrated a host of technologies for orbiting a capsule to perform experiments in microgravity conditions of space, and after completion of the experiments, de-orbit and recover the capsule. All these form the basis for reusable launch vehicles. SRE-1 was launched on January 10, 2007 by PSLV-C7 and twelve days later was successfully recovered over Bay of Bengal.

Space Sciences

India has flown Gamma-Ray and Retarding Potential Analyser payloads on two of its Stretched Rohini Satellites launched in 1992 and 1994. IRS-P3, launched in 1996, carried an X-ray astronomy payload. 

Chandrayaan-1, India’s first spacecraft mission to moon, was successfully launched by PSLV-C11 on October 22, 2008 into an Earth orbit. Carrying 11 payloads built in India and abroad, the spacecraft later reached the moon and went into an orbit around it with the help of its Liquid Apogee Motor. After reaching its final operational orbit of 100 km height from the lunar surface, the spacecraft’s Moon Impact Probe separated and successfully reached the lunar surface 25 minutes later, carrying Indian tricolour with it on November 14, 2008.  

An exclusive astronomical satellite, ASTROSAT, is also planned. Several ground-based facilities for space sciences, including a Mesosphere Stratosphere Troposphere (MST) Radar, have been set up in India.

Infrastructure for Space Development

India has established a strong infrastructure for executing its space programme. They include facilities for the development of satellites and launch vehicles and their testing; launch infrastructure for sounding rockets and satellite  launch vehicles; telemetry, tracking and command network; data reception and processing systems for remote sensing. A number of academic and research institutions as well as industries participate in the Indian Space Programme. Several Indian industries have the expertise to undertake sophisticated jobs required for space systems.  

ISRO has established elaborate national infrastructure to conceptualise, design, develop and fabricate satellites and launch vehicles, Ground support for testing, launching and in-orbit operation of satellites, Data acquisition, analysis and dissemination as well as space applications programme

Space Services from India

Space technology in the country has achieved a high level of maturity which is being marketed internationally. Antrix Corporation, the commercial arm of the Department of Space markets the space services and products. The services include enabling Indian Remote Sensing satellite data reception, launch services, lease of transponders on INSAT and TTC support.

International Co-operation

International co-operation has been the hallmark of Indian space programme. India participates in major space fora including the UN, IAF, COSPAR and CEOS. India has set up the Centre for Space Science and Technology Education in Asia and the Pacific (CSSTE-AP) which is sponsored by the United Nations. India offers training in space applications to personnel from developing countries under the programme Sharing of Experience in Space (SHARES). Chandrayaan-1, a 1400 kg unmanned spacecraft built by ISRO for exploring the moon, carried 11 scientific instruments from India, the United States, the European Space Agency and Bulgaria. ISRO and the French Space Agency CNES have undertaken a joint atmospheric satellite mission Megha-Tropiques to be launched in 2009-10.

EXPERIENCE THE SPACE - ISRO Space Museum The origin and growth of Indian Space programme is closely knitted with an old fishermen’s hamlet in Thumba, close to the venue of the 97th Congress. Five km down west, in the verdant settings of the Thumba beach, the space museum, a permanent exhibition set inside the erstwhile St.Mary Magdalene Church unravels the golden successes of Indian space programme. With real size models and scaled down models of launch vehicles and satellites, one gets to feel proud of our national achievements in space. The original Space Recovery Experiment (SRE) capsule recovered from space after 12 days in orbit and the breath-taking movie giving the feel of being near the real launch pad, makes a visit to space museum an unforgettable experience. Enjoy Walk Through

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