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The GSLV F14/INSAT-3DS mission will be launched by ISRO this evening at 5:35 p.m. from the Sriharikota launch site.
This coming Saturday night, a Geosynchronous Launch Vehicle (GSLV) dubbed “naughty boy” due to its inconsistent track record will send the meteorological satellite INSAT-3DS into orbit.
According to the ISRO, the GSLV-F14 will launch on Saturday at 5:35 p.m. from Sriharikota’s Satish Dhawan Space Centre. It will be the rocket’s tenth flight with the homegrown cryogenic engine and its sixteenth mission overall.
With the intention of providing more precise and educational weather forecasts and alerts for natural disasters, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) will launch its meteorological satellite INSAT-3DS atop spacecraft GSLV F14 on Saturday evening.
On this, the 16th space mission of the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle, the INSAT-3DS satellite is to be launched into the Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO).. This project, which represents a significant milestone in India’s space exploration efforts, has been fully financed by the Ministry of Earth Sciences.
India’s space agency is quite excited about the launch of INSAT-3DS because this satellite can investigate the ocean’s surface and produce very accurate weather forecasts, which can help prevent disasters.
India’s meteorological agencies rely heavily on the INSAT-3DS launch, but the carrier GSLV F14—dubbed the “naughty boy” of India’s space agency—has a history of malfunctions.
What makes GSLV F14 a “naughty boy”?
The INSAT-3DS meteorological satellite will be launched into space by the GSLV F14 spacecraft on its sixteenth mission. But according to a former ISRO chairman, the spacecraft is the “naughty boy” of the Indian space program.
The GSLV has a 40% failure rate and has seen a number of delivery-related issues in the past. GSLV F14 has experienced issues in six of its fifteen space missions to date.
This spacecraft was part of a successful mission that concluded in May 2023, however the previous mission had ended in failure.
Five things to know regarding the launch of the satellite INSAT-3DS are as follows
- Time and Date: Launched today, February 17, the satellite INSAT-3DS, which will be on board spacecraft GSLV F14, will lift off at 5:35 p.m. from Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh’s Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC-SHAR).
- This satellite’s intended use is: By observing the ocean’s surface, the satellite will aid in the creation of more detailed, accurate, and educational weather forecasts. It will also be able to issue alerts for natural disasters.
- GSLV F14’s sixteenth job: The INSAT-3DS satellite is to be launched into the Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) on this, the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle’s (16th) space mission.
- Finances: The 16th mission of the GSLV F14, which is fully supported by the Ministry of Earth Sciences, will represent a significant achievement in Indian space exploration.
- Success rate: Due to its frequent malfunctions, the GSLV F14 was referred to as a “naughty boy” by the former chairman of the ISRO. With 6 out of its 15 space flights completed thus far, GSLV F14 has experienced issues, giving it a 40% failure rate.
Details of the ISRO mission
This is the space agency’s second mission in Bengaluru in 2024; the first was the successful launch of the PSLV-C58/EXPOSAT mission on January 1.
The goal of Saturday’s mission, GSLV-F14/INSAT-3DS, is to support the currently operating INSAT-3D (launched in 2013) and INSAT-3DR (September 2016) missions by continuing to provide enhanced meteorological observations, according to ISRO, as well as ocean surfaces for weather forecasting, catastrophe warning, and satellite-assisted research and rescue (SAR) services.
After it was put into service, the 2,274 kg satellite would be used by the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), the Ministry of Earth Sciences, the National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT), the National Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasting, and the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services.
The rocket, which stands 51.7 meters tall, is scheduled to carry imager and sounder payloads, data relay transponders, and satellite-assisted search and rescue transponders. These instruments will be utilized for a variety of purposes, including studying cloud characteristics, fog, rainfall, snow cover, snow depth, fire, smoke, land, and ocean.
According to ISRO, the imager and sounder payloads on the most recent mission are comparable to those carried by INSAT-3D and INSAT-3DR, however they perform noticeably better radiometrically. The space agency also noted that industry had a major role in the satellite’s development.
The goal is to place the INSAT-3DS satellite into a Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) about 20 minutes following liftoff. It is anticipated that in a few days, they would perform orbit-raising maneuvers to launch the satellite into a geostationary orbit.
