GISAT-1 launch: ISRO to use GSLV-F10 to launch first Geo Imaging Satellite on 5 March at 05.43 pm IST

The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) is going to launch its first Geo Imaging Satellite (GISAT-1) on 5 March 2020 at 05.43 pm IST, subject to weather conditions. The launch is scheduled to take place from the Second Launch Pad of the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) at SHAR, Sriharikota. GISAT-1 is a state-of-the-art Earth observation satellite that will be used in the real-time observation of the country. under cloud-free conditions. The Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV-F10) will be used to place the satellite in a Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) at around 36,000 km altitude. This GTO is an elliptical orbit that is used to transfer satellites between two circular orbits of different radiuses but is in the same plane. The GISAT-1 will reach its final geostationary orbit using its onboard propulsion system. [caption id=“attachment_8087171” align=“alignnone” width=“1280”] The conical nose of the GSLV-F10. Image credit: ISRO[/caption] The satellite weighs about 2,275 kg and a four metre-diameter ogive shaped payload fairing is being flown for the first time in this GSLV flight. “Gisat-1 will do a full rotation of the Earth and come to the same point after every two hours. It is really good for fast imaging of the earth and can perform constant and rapid surveillance. It needed, the satellite can observe a point for a longer duration,” an ISRO source told the Times of India. [caption id=“attachment_8087161” align=“alignnone” width=“500”] The GISAT-1 at one of the workstations in ISRO’s facilities. Image credit: ISRO[/caption] This is the fourteenth flight of the GSLV and the first ISRO launch that will take place this year.