India to launch two UK satellites on September 16

ISRO's GSLV-F08 carrying GSAT-6A communication satellite blasts off into orbit. Pic/PTI

Indian rocket Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) will put into orbit on Sunday two foreign satellites - NovaSAR and S1-4 - together weighing 889 kg, said a top official.

"The September 16 rocket launch will be a fully commercial launch. The rocket will be carrying only the two foreign satellites," K. Sivan, Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), told IANS on Thursday.

He said such commercial launches were not new for ISRO as it has done that several times earlier.

The PSLV rocket will blast off from the first launch pad of Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh.

The two satellites belong to Surrey Satellite Technologies Ltd (SSTL), UK, under a commercial arrangement with Antrix Corp Ltd - the commercial arm of ISRO.

According to ISRO, the two earth observation satellites will be launched into a 583 km Sun Synchronous Orbit.

NovaSAR is a S-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar satellite intended for forest mapping, land use and ice cover monitoring, flood and disaster monitoring.

S1-4 is a high resolution Optical Earth Observation Satellite, used for surveying resources, environment monitoring, urban management and for disaster monitoring.

Earlier this year, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said it had lost contact with it and was making efforts to establish the link.

The space agency lost communication with the satellite when it attempted to ignite the engine in a third and final move to its desired location after its March 29 textbook launch from the spaceport of Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh.

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