India’s heaviest rocket, GSLV-Mk III, will lift off into space on October 22 for a commercial mission
On October 22, India’s heaviest rocket, GSLV MK III will officially lift off into space, ushering India into the world market for commercial space launch services.
The GSLV-Mk III will launch 36 broadband satellites for the British start-up ‘OneWeb’ from Sriharikota spaceport on its very first commercial mission.
A contract signed by the commercial arm of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), NewSpace India Limited, made the launch official (NSIL).
A satellite weighing four tons can be launched using the new rocket and be placed in the geosynchronous transfer orbit (GTO). A geosynchronous transfer orbit is where a rocket leaves the satellite for it to reach an orbital altitude where it orbits the earth once a day in sync with the earth’s rotation and thus maintains view of a fixed region on the earth.
The GSLV-MK III rocket stands 43 meters tall and is the shortest and heaviest of India’s active launch vehicles. The 641 tons of the GSLV-Mk III are equivalent to the weight of five fully loaded passenger aircraft.
“A short while after October 21 at midnight, the launch is scheduled. We’re looking at October 22 at 00:12” a top official from the national space agency said on Thursday, speaking under the condition of anonymity.
NSIL Chairman-cum-Managing Director Radhakrishnan D was previously reported as saying, “Undertaking the launch of 36 OneWeb satellites on-board GSLV-Mk III from India is a historic event for NSIL and ISRO.”
The Launch Spacecraft Mark 3 (LVM3), also known as the GSLV-Mk III or the Launch Vehicle, is a three-stage vehicle comprising a cryogenic stage, a liquid propellant core stage, and two solid motor strap-on stages. OneWeb has Bharti Enterprises as a significant investor and shareholder.
The deal with OneWeb, according to the central public sector enterprise NSIL, under the Department of Space, marks a historic turning point for NSIL and ISRO. This is the first time an LVM3 has entered the market for commercial launch services on a worldwide scale.
The liquid core stage of LVM3 and its two solid strap-on boosters have been fully integrated at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, SHAR, Sriharikota, according to an update from the NSIL dated October 4th.
According to NSIL, 36 OneWeb (Low Earth Orbit broadband connectivity) satellites have been assembled with the dispenser unit following the satisfactory completion of health testing. “The cryogenic upper stage of the launch vehicle and the attachment of the payload fairing with 36 satellites will take place during the next few days,” NSIL had noted.
