Missions will be carried out within two years.
By Dileep Thekkethil
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BENGALURU: The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) will launch 9 nano and micro satellites for the United States in 2015-2016.
The launch will be the first of ISRO’s missions that carry US satellites into space.
India has made a mark in space exploration by successfully launching its Mars mission Mangalyaan that currently scans the surface of the red planet, at a cost lesser than making a big budget Hollywood sci-fi movie like Gravity.
ISRO’s Polar Launching Vehicle (PSLV), considered as its most trustworthy satellite launcher, has decades of success stories. It has already put 45 foreign satellites of 9 nations into orbit. All 9 US satellites will be launched using India’s indigenously built PSLV; the vehicle that put Mangalyaan on orbit.
ISRO chairman A S Kiran Kumar was quoted as saying in reports, “The US will be the 20th country to sign up for a commercial launch by India. It’s (PSLV) the cost-effective technology we have.”
The Director of Vikram Sarabhai Center, Dr. KM Sivan, said ISRO’s first reusable Launch Vehicle shall be demonstrated by the end of the year. He also added that ISRO will launch its fully developed Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) Mark II by the end of August.
The GSLV vehicle, made at a cost of Rs. 250 crore, will have a 2.1-ton capacity and can carry communication satellites like GSAT 6. The launch of the GSAT 6 on August 27 will help in improving the communications sector of the country.