The Indian Space Research Organisations (ISRO) said it had successfully placed 36 broadband communication satellites on Sunday for London-headquartered Network Access Associated Limited (OneWeb).
Isro’s heaviest rocket, LVM3-M2/OneWeb India-1, achieved the feat on its maiden commercial mission on Sunday. The space agency described the mission as 'historic'.
OneWeb confirmed on Sunday that it had made contact with all 36 satellites. OneWeb Ltd is a global communication network powered from space, enabling internet connectivity for governments and businesses. Bharti Enterprises is a major investor and shareholder.
Fantastic news as we are delighted to report we have made contact with all 36 satellites from #OneWebLaunch14! 🚀
This means we now have over 70% of our LEO satellite fleet in orbit. pic.twitter.com/byYr9cIDYp— OneWeb (@OneWeb) October 22, 2022
This was OneWeb’s 14th launch, bringing the constellation to 462 satellites. NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), a central public sector enterprise under the Department of Space, had signed two service contracts with OneWeb for the launch.
The rocket blasted off from Sriharikota spaceport to place the broadband communication satellites into the Low Earth Orbit (LEO). On Sunday, the 43.5-metre tall rocket soared at 12.07 am from the second launch pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at the end of the 24-hour countdown.
The vehicle is one of the heaviest and can carry satellites up to 8,000 kg. This was LVM3's maiden commercial mission and also NSIL's first with the said launch vehicle.
LVM3 M2/OneWeb India-1 mission is completed successfully. All the 36 satellites have been placed into intended orbits. @NSIL_India @OneWeb
— ISRO (@isro) October 22, 2022
Sunil Bharti Mittal, Executive Chairman of OneWeb, said: “Today, my dream of having an Indian element in the OneWeb constellation has been realised. This launch with ISRO and NSIL opens up the space sector in India with the possibility of billions of dollars flowing into the country."
According to ISRO, the mission has the heaviest payload with 36 satellites of OneWeb, becoming the first Indian rocket with a payload of 5,796 kg. The launch is also the first for LVM3-M2 to place the satellites in the Low Earth Orbit (up to 1,200 km above the earth), unlike Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO).
Somanath S, Secretary, Department of Space and Chairman, ISRO, said: “This is the first-ever commercial launch of LVM3 with the heaviest payload to LEO. The LVM3 was conceived primarily for launching geostationary satellites with a payload capacity of 4T, which can be used for launching 6T payloads for LEO."
ISRO scientists have rechristened the launch vehicle its present name GSLV-MKK III as the newest rocket is capable of launching a 4,000 kg class of satellites into GTO and 8,000 kgs of payloads into LEO. GSLV-Mk III had four successful missions in the past.
LVM3-M2 is a three-stage launch vehicle consisting of two solid propellants S200 strap-ons, on its sides and a core stage comprising the L110 liquid stage and C25 cryogenic stage.
First Published:Â Oct 23, 2022 8:52 AM IST
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