On 30th July 2023, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully launched the PSLV-C56/DS-SAR Mission, Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV–C56) carrying 7 Singapore Satellites – DS-SAR as primary satellite along with 6 co-passengers, from the First Launch Pad (FLP) Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh (AP).
- This is a Dedicated Commercial Mission conducted by ISRO under a contract with NewSpace India Limited (NSIL) for ST Engineering, Singapore.
- This marks’s the 58th flight of PSLV and 17th flight of PSLV in core alone configuration.
- This was the 431st foreign satellite launch from India by ISRO and the 4th dedicated PSLV mission for Singapore government.
Highlights:
i.The launcher placed all 7 satellites from Singapore into a circular Near-equatorial Orbit (NEO) at an altitude of 535 km with 5 degree orbital inclination.
ii.ISRO attempted a unique De-Orbiting Experiment using the PS4, the 4th stage of the PSLV-C56 rocket.
iii.PS4 de-orbited to Low Earth circular orbit in a 295×300 km, using left out propellants to reduce orbital life of spent PS4 stage. PS4 will re-enters atmosphere in less than 2 months.
Payloads of PSLV-C56/DS-SAR Mission:
| Satellite | Agency(country) | Separating Mass(kilogram) |
|---|---|---|
| DS-SAR (primary payload) | Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA) – ST Engineering (Singapore) | 352 |
| VELOX-AM | Nanyang Technological University (NTU) (Singapore) | 24 |
| ARCADE Atmospheric Coupling and Dynamics Explorer (ARCADE) | 23 | |
| SCOOB-II | 4 | |
| NuLIoN | ALIENA Private Limited (Singapore) | 13 |
| Galassia-2 | National University of Singapore (NUS) (Singapore) | 3.5 |
| ORB-12 STRIDER | NuSpace Private Limited (Singapore) | 3 |
About DS-SAR Satellite:
The DS-SAR satellite, weighing 352 kg, is a Radar Imaging Earth Observation Satellite.
- It was developed in partnership with the Government of Singapore’s Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA) and ST Electronics, a part of major regional defence and engineering group ST Engineering, Singapore.
- DS-SAR carries a Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) payload developed by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) based in Lod, Israel.
- Synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) is a form of radar that is used to create two-dimensional images or three-dimensional reconstructions of objects.
Key Points:
i.It will be used to support the satellite imagery requirements of various agencies within the Government of Singapore.
ii.This will enables the Singapore government to assess natural disaster damage, monitor land use, track deforestation, and support security and defense operations.
iii.ST Engineering will use it for multi-modal and higher responsiveness imagery and geospatial services for their commercial customers.
iv.The commercial customers can utilize the satellite for oil and gas exploration, agricultural monitoring, and infrastructure assessment.
v.DS-SAR also offers all-weather day and night coverage and is capable of capturing images at 1m-resolution with full polarimetry.
Co-passenger of DS-SAR:
The following six satellites weigh a total of 70.5kg.
VELOX-AM:
VELOX-AM is a 23 kg microsatellite developed by Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore.
- Its primary purpose is to demonstrate Additive Manufacturing (AM) payloads technology.
ARCADE (Atmospheric Coupling and Dynamics Explorer):
Weighing 24 Kg, ARCADE is a 27U microsatellite jointly designed and constructed by NTU, Singapore, and the INSPIRE (International Satellite Program in Research and Technology) consortium.
- It is equipped with an iodine-based solid propellant propulsion module, and employs a Hall effect thruster for orbit maintenance during its low altitude mission.
SCOOB-II:
Weighing 4 Kg, SCOOB–II is a CubeSat designed and developed by students at the Satellite Research Centre (SaRC), NTU in Singapore.
- It is designed for a 6-month mission and uses a three-axis controlled reaction wheel assembly for attitude control.
NuLIoN:
Weighing 3Kg, NuLIoN is an advanced 3U nanosatellite developed by NuSpace Private Limited, Singapore. Its purpose is to provide seamless Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity in urban and remote locations.
- It serves as a seed satellite for a Low Earth Orbit (LEO) equatorial constellation, offering continuous LoRaWAN (Long Range Wide Area Network) IoT services.
Galassia-2:
Weighing 3.5 Kg, Galassia-2 is a 3U nanosatellite developed by the National University of Singapore (NUS).
- The main mission of GALASSIA-2 is to perform an inter-satellite link (ISL) with TeLEOS-1, Singapore’s 1st commercial Earth observation satellite launched in 2015.
- It aims to demonstrate the use of Commercial Off The Shelf (COTS) multispectral imagery for space applications.
ORB-12 STRIDER:
ORB-12 STRIDER, Weighing 13 Kg, was developed under an international
collaboration, coordinated by Singapore-based ALIENA Private Limited, including Orbital Astronautics as bus providers, and Aurora Propulsion Technologies as subsystem co-developers.
- It demonstrates next-generation propulsion systems tailored for small satellite constellations.
- It also carries world’s first Multi-modal all-Electric Propulsion Engine (MEPE), showcasing ALIENA’s Multi-Stage Ignition Compact (MUSIC) Hall thruster and Aurora’s ARM resistojets.
Key Points:
i.ISRO is set to launch four more missions in 2023 which included another PSLV mission in August or early September 2023, the Gaganyaan test vehicle, third development mission of Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) rocket launcher to deploy small satellites in LEO, and Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) mission for launching INSAT (Indian National Satellite System)-3DS.
ii.It should be noted that the launch of customer satellites by ISRO not only generates revenue but also contributes to India’s space economy’s growth.
- In October 2022, a report by industry body Indian Space Association (ISpA) and consultancy firm EY India projected India to become a $13 billion space economy by 2025, of which satellite launch services and applications will account for 36% or over $4.5 billion.
iii.PSLV is an 4 Stage Rocket, It’s First & Third Stage Works on Solid Propulsion know as Hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene (HTPB) and Second & Fourth Stage Works on Liquid Hypergolic Fuel.
Recent Related News:
i.The Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) chaired by the Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi has approved the Indian Space Policy 2023 that will enable the private sector to participate in various space activities, such as constructing satellites, rockets, and launch vehicles, as well as collecting and sharing data.
ii.ISRO has successfully conducted the Reusable Launch Vehicle Autonomous Landing Mission (RLV LEX) at the Aeronautical Test Range(ATR) in Chitradurga, Karnataka. The mission was performed in collaboration with the Defence Space Research Organisation (DRDO), and the Indian Air Force (IAF).
About Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO):
Chairman – Sreedhara Panicker Somanath
Headquarters– Bengaluru, Karnataka
Establishment– 1969
