At 5.08 p.m. on November 14, 2018, ISRO launched the communication satellite GSAT-29 on board its second developmental flight GSLV-Mk III D2 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota.
Specifications of GSLV MK III
It is a three-stage heavy lift launch vehicle, measuring 43.494 m and weighing 640 tonnes.
The first stage has two boosters with solid propellant, the second is the core with liquid propellant, and the cryogenic engine forms the final stage.
Specifications of GSAT-29
GSAT 29
GSAT 29
Weighing 3,423 kg at lift-off, GSAT-29 is the heaviest satelliteto be launched from India. With a mission life of 10 years, it is the 33rd communication satellite built by ISRO.
It will be placed in a geostationary transfer orbit. At its closest point it will be 190 km above the Earth, and at its farthest it will be 35,975 km above the Earth.
According to ISRO, “GSAT-29 is a multi-beam, multiband communication satellite.” Its payloads are designed to mainly focus on connectivity to the users in the hilly and geographically inaccessible areas, especially those in Jammu & Kashmir and North Eastern regions of India.
GSAT 29
It also carries a Geo High-Resolution Camera to aid in high-resolution imaging. For the first time, an optical communication payload will be utilised for data transmission at a very high rate.
ISRO’s Master Control facility at Hassan, Karnataka will take over the command and control of GSAT-29 soon after its separation from GSLV Mk III - D2.
With the success of this launch, the developmental phase of the GSLV Mk III vehicle programme will be complete and the vehicle’s operational phase will begin.
