Source: THE HINDU-16th February,2020
They include new categories such as first Geo Imaging Satellite
The country will send up an unusually large number of
10 earth observation (EO) satellites during 2020-21, according to the latest
annual report of the Indian Space Research Organisation for 2019-20.
On a quick look, such a pre-ponderence of the EO
launches is unprecedented and includes new categories such as the first Geo
Imaging Satellite, GISAT-1.
In comparison, only three communication satellites —
which is another major category in space infrastructure — and two navigation
satellites are planned for the coming financial year starting April.
The annual plan mentions 36 missions, another high for
a year: these includes both satellites and their launchers.
The high number also stands out amidst the immediate two years before and after
the plan. For the ongoing fiscal, ISRO had proposed launching six EO
satellites, of which two are due to go. For 2021-22, the plan is to add eight
EO satellites.
ISRO says 19 national EO satellites, 18 communication
satellites and eight navigation satellites are in service, driving uses from
broadcasting, telephony, Internet services, weather and agriculture-related
forecasting, security, disaster-time rescue and relief and location-based
services. Three of the communication satellites are dedicated for military
communication and networking.
In the ongoing fiscal 2019-20, 17 missions have been
planned to be launched and up to six of them are due to be completed by March
31, it says.
ISRO was recently given a budget of nearly ₹13,480
crore for the next fiscal.
The EO sats are ostensibly for benign uses such as
land and agriculture watch. But their images also have a very important use for
the military, for keeping an eye on the borders. The satellites such as RISATs,
which carry a synthetic aperture radar on them, provide all-weather, 24-hour
information to security agencies.
Apart from GISAT-1 that is apparently fixed over the
subcontinent at an orbit 36,000 km high, the space agency plans to launch a new
series of high resolution HRSATs as a threesome on a single PSLV launcher.
The upcoming EO satellites include radar imaging
satellites RISAT-2BR2, RISAT- 1A and 2A; Oceansat-3 and Resourcesat-3/3S.
The RISAT-2BR2 will form a triad fleet with its
predecessors RISAT-2B and RISAT-2B1, all going around 120 degrees apart. They
will “increase the frequency of observation in the areas of interest to provide
all-weather, day/night imaging services from space,” the report said.
