The postponed navigation satellite, IRNSS-1D, is now likely to be flown towards the end of this month, according to a highly placed official of the Indian Space Research Organisation.
“We are targeting the last few days of March for the launch. A team is working on a new telemetry transmitter to replace the [faulty] one that failed in the satellite. After fixing it, all numerous tests that we conducted earlier must be repeated,” M.Y.S. Prasad, Director of the launch unit, Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota, told The Hindu on Tuesday.
The launch was earlier set for March 9 and the satellite had been matched with the launch vehicle ahead of it. Routine checks on March 4 found a transmitter malfunctioning, when ISRO deferred the flight and took out the satellite to put a new transmitter.
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When in orbit, IRNSS-1D will be fourth in the seven-spacecraft band of Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System, which is expected to give the country its own location-based system similar to the U.S. military’s GPS.
The satellite and its sub-systems come from ISRO Satellite Centre, Bengaluru.
We are targeting the last few days of March. A team is working on a new telemetry transmitter to replace the [faulty] one
M.Y.S. Prasad,Director, Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota
We are targeting the last few days of March. A team is working on a new telemetry transmitter to replace the [faulty] oneM.Y.S. Prasad,Director, Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota