ISRO is all set for its first ever commercial launch on Sunday, 16 September, from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre launchpad at Sriharikota. Two British satellites — Novasar and S1-4 — will be the main payload aboard the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV)-C42 rocket. Once in orbit, the satellites will add to Britain’s Earth observation capabilities, The Times of India
reported. “It will be a full-fledged commercial launch,” ISRO Chairman K Sivan
said. “However, this will not be the first time ISRO is going for a full commercial launch.” [caption id=“attachment_4299757” align=“alignnone” width=“1280”] Representational image. Image courtesy: ISRO[/caption] After a long and quiet eight months, this launch mark ISRO’s 239th foreign satellite launch. It has carried out satellite launches for 28 different countries so far.
**ISRO** is keen to compete and capture the lion’s share of global launch market, the report says, eyeing a bigger chunk of the global satellite launch market. The space agency’s foreign commercial launches are mediated by Antrix, its commercial arm. The next launch will be a GSAT-7A satellite, due to launch in November. It is designated for use by the Indian Air Force and will help bridge the gap between their base-to-ground radar communication, according to a One India report.
With this launch, ISRO will have 239 satellite launches for 28 different countries under its belt.
Advertisement
End of Article