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ISRO gears up for surveillance boy RISAT-2B launch tomorrow
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is all set for yet another mission when it will launch RISAT-2B, a radar imaging earth observation satellite using its workhorse launch vehicle PSLV-C46 from SHAR Range Sriharikota, about 80 km from here, on May 22.
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Chennai
ISRO sources on Monday said the launch would take place from the First Launch Pad at 5.27 am early on Wednesday morning and the 300 kg RISAT-2B will be placed into an orbit of 555 km with an inclination of 37 deg to the equator.
The Mission Readiness Review Committee would meet at SDSC and after the Launch Authorisation Board gave its clearance, the countdown for the launch was expected to commence tomorrow.During the countdown, propellant filling operations would be carried out in the four-stage 44.4 metre tall vehicle. The 300 kg RISAT-2B is the fourth flight unit of the RISAT programme and it would be used for reconnaissance, strategic surveillance and disaster management. It uses an active SAR (Synthetic Aperture Radar) imager to provide continuity of service for RISAT-2.
The sources said that when it was cloudy or dark, ‘regular’ remote-sensing or optical imaging satellites, which work like a light-dependent camera, could not perceive hidden or surreptitious objects on the ground. Satellites that were equipped with an active sensor, the SAR could sense or ‘observe’ Earth in a special way from space day and night, rain or cloud. This all-weather seeing feature is what makes them special for security forces and disaster relief agencies.
The Indian space agency was planning to launch at least six such satellites in the near future, RISAT-2B would be followed by RISAT-2BR1, 2BR2, RISAT-1A, 1B, 2A satellites.
Soon, law on use of IST in space missions
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has started using Indian Standard Time (IST) obtained from National Physical Laboratory (NPL) in its projections and the government will soon introduce a bill in Parliament for the compulsory use of Indian time in the entire country.
NPL maintains the IST. India is not dependent on other countries for time. But, it is being used in a limited manner and there is no restriction on the use of different time. The government is planning to use only one time in the entire country which will be Indian time. NPL Director Dr Dinesh Kumar Aswal told reporters on the sidelines of a programme on Monday, “It is important to have information related to its exact time with your transactions done through digital media for cyber security. In many developed countries, their local time is the only legal time. At the same time, there is an official time of Indian time in India, but it has not yet been given the statutory status. For this reason, we are free to use any time. There are many problems related to the transaction.”
Dr Aswal said that the government has planned to use the time used for every purpose in the country in accordance with the clock of NPL. NPL time is accurate up to 2.7 nano seconds compared to the international time.
“We have started issuing time to ISRO from our clock for their launch. It will be used everywhere, including Internet service providers, banking sector, railway, electricity sector. This will save the government considerably,” he added.
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