An advanced French remote sensing satellite – SPOT-6 – weighing close to 800 kg will be launched by ISRO's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) from Sriharikota during the second half of 2012.
Agreement signed
An agreement was signed recently between ISRO's commercial wing Antrix Corporation Limited and Astrium SAS, a company under European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (EADS), France, for the commercial launch of the satellite, said a press release from ISRO.
Along with SPOT-6, the PSLV will also carry other co-passenger payloads. “This launch services agreement signed between Antrix and Astrium is part of a long-term agreement signed between the two agencies in September 2008,” the release said.
Earlier contract
In November 2010, under a commercial contract between Antrix and Astrium, an advanced communication satellite Hylas was built for a European customer.
“In the coming days, further collaboration possibilities between Antrix/ISRO and Astrium would be explored,” ISRO's release added.
INSAT-2E
Meanwhile INSAT-2E, the last of the five satellites in the INSAT-2 series, has completed its mission life after 13 years in orbit. Launched on April 3,1999 by the European Ariane-5 launcher, INSAT-2E carried 14 C-band and 5 lower extended C-band transponders for various communication services.
The satellite also carried a very high resolution radiometer and a charge-coupled device camera for meteorological observation. Eleven communication transponders of 36 MHz bandwidth onboard INSAT-2E satellite were leased to the International Telecommunication Satellite Organisation, the first such lease from an Indian satellite.
