The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is on schedule to launch its heaviest payload ever, a US satellite weighing about 6,100 kgs from the Satish Dhawan Space Center at Sriharikota near Chennai on December 24.
ISRO’s Launch Vehicle Mark-3 (LMV-3) will place the BlueBird Block-2 satellite constructed by the American firm, AST SpaceMobile, into a low earth orbit (LEO) at an altitude of 520 kms.
This marks the ninth flight and the sixth operational mission of LMV-3, ISRO’s most powerful rocket till date which has been used for other missions like the Chandrayaan-2 and Chandrayaan-3.
The heaviest payload carried by ISRO into space so far is 5,805 Kgs, when 36 OneWeb Gen-1 satellites were launched collectively for the United Kingdom in March 2023, by the LMV-3’s third commercial mission. Comparatively, Chandrayaan-3 space module weighed 3,900 kgs.
The BlueBird satellite
BlueBird block-2 is part of a global LEO constellation to provide direct-to-mobile connectivity through satellites. This constellation will enable 4G and 5G voice and video calls, texts, streaming and data connectivity for standard mobile smartphones anywhere anytime, including remote areas.
It features a 223 meters square phased array antenna, making it the largest commercial communications satellite ever deployed into low Earth orbit. The satellite is designed to deliver up to 10 times the bandwidth capacity of many present day satellites in orbit.
ATS SpaceMobile, headquartered in Texas, already has a fleet of communications satellites in orbit, including the BlueBird series, with more new-generation spacecraft being developed. The first such satellite, BlueWalker-1 was also launched by ISRO in 2019 with its Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV).
Foreign satellite launches by ISRO
ISRO has been carrying out satellite launches commercially for foreign countries since 1999, when it placed South Lorea’s KITSAT-3 and Germany’s DLR-TUBSAT into orbit using its workhorse, the PSLV.
It has since launched about 433 satellites from 34 countries for governments as well as private players, with the United States being its largest client. The space agency has raked in a revenue of approximately 150 million dollars through such missions.
The satellites launched for foreign entities include earth observation, communication, technology demonstration and scientific missions.
In February 2017, ISRO set a record by launching 104 satellites in a single flight by the PSLV. Out of these, 101 were foreign payloads and among them 96 were from the US. Available data suggests that ISRO has launched about 350 American satellites so far.
The most recent US payload launched by ISRO was the jointly developed ISRO-NASA Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR), a large, highly advanced earth imaging satellite. Prior to this Janus-1, a small American satellite had been launched by ISRO in February 2023.
Why is ISRO preferred by other countries
ISRO has established itself as a reliable service provider and is a major player in the global space domain. It carries out foreign missions through its commercial arm, the NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), which was earlier known as the formerly Antrix Corporation.
The Indian space agency is preferred for satellite launches due to its exceptional cost-effectiveness, high reliability and strong technical expertise. With 63 launches, the PSLV has a success rate of 96.6 percent while the LMV-3, has a success rate of 100 percent.
The strategic location of its launch center at Sriharikota on the eastern sea board in South India is also advantageous. Being near the equator, it provides extra boost from the Earth’s rotation, reducing the fuel required by the rockets.
