ISRO to launch 22 satellites in single mission

Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) is set to launch a record number of 22 satellites in a single mission in May 2016.

The launch vehicle will inject 22 satellites into orbit, a first in the history of the organisation.

Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, PSLV C34 will carry India’s remote sensing satellite Cartosat 2C along with 21 other satellites to be injected into the orbit.

The 21 satellites to be launched will include four micro-satellites weighing 85 to 130 kg each and 17 nano-satellites weighing 4 to 30 kg. 18 of these satellites are being launched for foreign agencies including the United States, Canada, Germany and Indonesia. Two of the nano-satellites have been developed by the Pune Engineering College and Sathyabama University, Chennai.

The four micro-satellites to be launched are:

• Maritime Monitoring and Messaging Microsatellite (M3MSAT): This micro-satellite of Canada will be used for collection and study of automatic identification system signals from low earth orbit.

• LAPAN A3: The micro-satellite of Indonesia will used for earth surveillance and magnetic field monitoring.

• BIROS: This German satellite is meant for remote sensing of high temperature events.

• SKYSAT Gen2-1: This US satellite will be used for earth imaging.

The satellites will be launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.

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