Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will put a second satellite in orbit in July: advanced meteorology satellite INSAT-3D is slated to fly weeks after the space agency launches the regional navigation satellite. ISRO will launch navigation satellite IRNSS-1A from Sriharikota on the light-lift PSLV rocket on July 1.
INSAT-3D is meant exclusively for meteorological studies. Weighing 2,090 kg, it will be flown to its orbit on the European Ariane 5 launch vehicle. It is tentatively planned to be sent up on July 26, says an ISRO official.
Paris-based Arianespace announced on Thursday that the spacecraft had reached the French Guiana space port of Kourou this week and would go into space along with Alphasat, Europe’s largest telecommunication satellite, which is owned by the U.K.-based commercial operator Inmarsat. It said, “Payload preparations for Arianespace’s third Ariane 5 mission in 2013 have commenced following this week’s delivery of INSAT-3D, which is one of two spacecraft that will be lofted on a heavy-lift flight targeted for the second half of July.”
