ISRO successfully launches Oceansat-3 and 8 nanosatellites in a single mission

After the successful launch of the first privately developed rocket from Sriharikota spaceport, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully launched Oceansat-3 and eight nanosatellites, including one from Bhutan. in a single mission on Saturday, November 26

The launch took place at 11.46 am from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, off the coast of Andhra Pradesh. It was a near-perfect launch, although cloudy weather obstructed the view of the onlookers.

According to a senior ISRO official, the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) carried EOS-06 (Oceansat-3) and eight nanosatellites, including BhutanSat, 'Anand' from Pixxel, two Thybolts from Dhruva Space, and four Astrocasts from Spaceflight USA.

Oceansat-3 is the third flight in the mission used for conducting ocean observations.

BhutanSat, 'Anand' from Pixxel, Thybolt-1 and Thybolt-2 from Dhruva Space are passenger satellites. The two Dhruva Space satellites will be lifting off into low-earth orbit.

The previous PSLV mission, C53, carried a Dhruva Space payload (DSOD-1U) along with one from another Indian start-up Digantara and other foreign satellites.

The success of the DSOD-1U paved the way for the two Thybolt satellites flying on PSLV C54.

On November 18, India successfully launched the Vikram-S, a privately-developed rocket. Developed by Skyroot Aerospace, a private space start-up, the suborbital vehicle was launched from Satish Dhawan Space Centre of ISRO in Sriharikota.

The rocket is capable of reaching Mach 5 or five times the speed of sound and carrying a payload of 83 kg to 100 kg.

ISRO recently announced that the payload capability of India's heaviest Launch Vehicle Mark 3 (LVM3) rocket has been enhanced by up to 450kg with a successful engine test.  Indigenously developed for the LVM3, the CE20 cryogenic engine was put through a hot test at an uprated thrust level of 21.8 tonnes for the first time on November 9, the space agency said.

This will enhance the LVM3 payload capability up to 450 kg with additional propellant loading, ISRO said.