Communication Satellite GSAT-7A On-Board GSLV-F11 to be Launched at Sriharikota Today

GSLV-F11 carrying 2,250-kilogram GSAT-7A is scheduled to lift-off at 4:10 PM on Wednesday from the second launch pad at the spaceport of Sriharikota, situated about 110-kilometers from the region.

New Delhi: Communication satellite GSAT-7A on-board GSLV-F11 will be launched at Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota on Wednesday, December 19, said Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

GSLV-F11 carrying 2,250-kilogram GSAT-7A is scheduled to lift-off at 4:10 PM on Wednesday from the second launch pad at the spaceport of Sriharikota, situated about 110-kilometers from the region. The mission life of the GSAT-7A, built by the ISRO, is eight years. It will provide communication capability to users in Ku-band over the Indian region, the space agency said.

A statement by ISRO read, “The 26-hour countdown has commenced at 2:10 PM (IST) for the launch of communication satellite GSAT-7A onboard GSLV-F11 at Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.” The GSLV-F11 will inject GSAT-7A into a Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) and it will be placed in its final Geostationary Orbit using the onboard propulsion systems.

GSLV-F11 is ISRO’s fourth generation launch vehicle with three stages. The four liquid strap-ons and a solid rocket motor at the core form the first stage of the launch vehicle, while the second stage is equipped with high thrust engine using liquid fuel, the space agency said on its website.

The Cryogenic Upper Stage forms the third and final stage of the vehicle. The seventh launch of 2018 from Sriharikota marks the 69th mission of GSLV-F11 for ISRO.

Earlier this month, on December 5, India’s heaviest satellite GSAT-11, that ultimately boosted the broadband services in the country, was successfully launched by an Arianespace rocket from the French Guiana. Weighing about 5,854 kg, the GSAT-11 is the “heaviest” satellite built by ISRO.

It is the next generation “high throughput” communication satellite configured around ISRO’s I-6K Bus, and has a designed lifetime of more than 15 years. Post-separation, ISRO’s Master Control Facility at Hassan, in Karnataka, took over the command and control of GSAT-11 and found its health parameters normal.

GSAT-11 was positioned at 74-degree east longitude in the geostationary orbit adding that subsequently, the two solar arrays and four antenna reflectors of the satellite will be deployed in orbit. The satellite will be operational after the successful completion of all in-orbit tests.