Isro Puts Another Rocket Into Global Satellite Launch Market With GSLV-Mk II

The operationalisation of India's heavier rocket Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mk II (GSLV-Mk II) opens up more launch service revenue opportunity, said a top official of Antrix Corporation Ltd.

India on Thursday successfully put into orbit its Insat-3DR weather satellite using GSLV-Mk II rocket and in the process put the rocket, which has a carrying capacity of 2-2.5 ton to geo-transfer orbit, for commercial launches from its "developmental" stage.

"The global satellite launch services market is estimated at around $5 billion. It is not known the annual launch market size of satellites that would suit GSLV-Mk II," S.Rakesh, Chairman-cum-Managing Director, Antrix told reporters here.

(Also see: Isro to Launch 5 Satellites in September)

According to him, India's lighter rocket Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) is consolidating its position in the small satellite launch market.

"The GSLV rocket will operate in a different satellite launch segment. We are looking at various avenues to earn foreign exchange using this rocket," Rakesh said.

Adding to this, Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) Chairman A.S.Kiran Kumar said: "Antrix is also looking at launching small satellites in low orbits. Several small satellites can be accommodated in one GSLV."

India will also test launch a much heavier rocket GSLV-Mk III with four ton carrying capacity during this December or in January 2017.

"It is a new vehicle (rocket). The target launch date was December 2016 but there could be slight delay as large number of tests have to be carried out. We will also be taking the opportunity to launch a communication satellite atop the GSLV-Mk II that will be similar to GSAT 11 but slightly small in size," said Kiran Kumar.

Officials of Indian space agency had earlier termed GSLV as the "naughty boy" as owing to its failure rate and tricky cryogenic engine technology.

However on the back of GSLV-Mk-II success for third consecutive time, S.Somanath, Director, Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre (LPSC) declared that "the cryogenic engine technology no more scares Isro".

Queried about the impending launches, K.Sivan, Director, Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) said India will be launching ScatSat - a weather monitoring and forecasting satellite -- with polar satellite launch vehicle (PSLV) at the end of the month.

The Indian satellite will have as its co-passenger an Algerian Alsat satellite and six other satellites.

Both the satellites will be put into different orbits. Thus, the fourth stage/engine of the rocket will be switched off after first ejecting ScatSat. Then, after a gap of around 30 minutes, the engine will be restarted to put the Algerian satellite into its intended orbit.

About the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS), Kiran Kumar said the service is being used by several entities.

He said an advertiser on autorickshaws use IRNSS to track the vehicles and pay the vehicle owners.