Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has successfully deployed the RISAT-2BR1 along with nine foreign satellites with PSLV-C48 mission that is the 50th mission of PSLV. It was launched from the First Launch Pad (FLP) of Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR, Sriharikota at 1525 Hrs IST on December 11, 2019.
This was the final mission of the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) after 26 years of service for ISRO since its first launch was made on 20 September 1993. ISRO Chief K. Sivan announced that the ISRO’s new rocket Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) and other rockets will make their maiden launch in 2020.
RISAT-2BR1 is the new Radar imaging earth observation satellite developed by ISRO to upgrade the earth imaging capability of the country and is meant for applications in various fields like agriculture, forestry, and disaster management support. It weighs about 628 kg and will be placed into an orbit of 576 km at an inclination of 37 degrees and it will have a life of five years.
The other nine satellites deployed are from USA (multi-mission Lemur-4 satellites, technology demonstration Tyvak-0129, earth imaging 1HOPSAT), Israel (remote sensing Duchifat-3), Italy (search and rescue Tyvak-0092) and Japan (QPS-SAR – a radar imaging earth observation satellite). These satellites are launched under a commercial arrangement with NewSpace India Limited (NSIL).
Also, this is the 75th vehicle mission from SDSC SHAR, Sriharikota
