On 23 Sep 2009, a month after its Chandrayaan-1 moon
explorer went kaput due to communications failure,
ISRO successfully put into orbit seven satellites
approx. 720 kilometres above the Earth, using their
tried and tested PSLV IV rocket. The satellites
included Oceansat-2, meant to increase the
capability of Oceansat-1 launched in 1999 and to
monitor ocean patterns and identify fishing zones.
The six foreign satellites, which rode piggyback on
the same launch vehicle, included four from Germany
and one each from Switzerland and Turkey. They are
university-funded payloads being used to test new
technologies.
Mindful of the country's ambitious entry into the
space launch business, Indian Space Research
Organisation (ISRO) Chairman G. Madhavan Nair
proudly stated, "Once again we have proved that we
can do the job precisely. The satellites have been
placed in the desired orbit at the exact time," from
the space lauch pad at Sriharikota, about 80
kilometres northeast of Chennai. The cost of the
launch was estimated at US$40 m (Rs 2 bn).
ISRO quietly entered into the space launch market in
2007 by successfully putting in orbit an Italian
satellite and because of tremendous cost advantages
over other countries in the business, hopes to
corner a substantial percentage share in the global
market.
Oceansat-2 will study the role of oceans on the
Earth's atmosphere and the data will be used to
identify fishing zones, as well as helping with
coastal & weather studies, weather forecasting and
climate patterns.
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