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INSAT 4A Successfully launched
[December 22nd 2005]
December 22, Wednesday night Indian Space Research Organization
kicks of with their INSAT 4 Series by successfully placing INSAT 4A in the
Geostationary orbit with their Launch Provider Ariane. Launcher Ariane 5G also
carried Meteosat weather Satellite for Eumetsat alongwith INSAT 4A. This also makes
Ariane the only commercial launcher in service capable of imultaneously
launching two payloads.
Insat 4A/MSG2 mission at a glance
The mission was carried out by a standard Ariane 5G launcher
from Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. Lift-off was on Wednesday,
December 21 at 7:33 p.m. local time in Kourou (5:33 p.m. in Washington, D.C.,
22:33 GMT, 11:33 p.m. in Paris, and on Thursday, December 22 at 3:33 a.m. in
Bangalore).
INSAT 4A Specifications
Insat 4A, weighing about 3,200 kg. at launch; ISRO's "heaviest
communication satellite", was designed, assembled and integrated by ISRO in
Bangalore, India. Insat 4A is a dedicated telecommunications satellite, with 12
Ku-band transponders and 12 C-band transponders. Its footprint will primarily
cover all of the Indian sub-continent. The satellite will help TV channels with
their direct-to-home (DTH) services, among other things.
Insat 4A is the first spacecraft in a new-generation of Indian
satellites offering telecommunication services, with Insat 4B expected to
follow a year later (launch provider not yet selected). The total cost of Insat
4A and Insat 4B is approximately Rs 1,354 crore. The estimated revenue from the
two satellites is Rs 276 crore per annum. Over a period of 12 years, the two
satellites would generate Rs 3,312 crore.
INSAT 4 Series Ahead
ISRO plans, by 2007, to launch seven satellites in the INSAT-4
series to increase its capacity to 250 transponders. The INSAT 4 series will
offer 60 Ku band transponders, 48 C band transponders and 12 extended C band
transponders. Insat 4D will be reserved as a spare satellite. ISRO currently
operates five telecommunication satellites: Insat-2C, Insat-2DT, Insat-2E,
Insat-3B and Insat-3C.
INSAT-4 series is planned to have seven satellites, INSAT-4A
through INSAT-4G with INSAT-4D as a spare. The transponder capacity of this
series has been worked out after evaluating the requirement projected by
different uses/user departments in telecom sector. It is planned that, by 2007,
INSAT system will have about 250 transponders in various bands catering to a
demand of up to 11 Giga Bits Per Second (GBPS) capacity.
ISRO has scheduled the launch of Insat 4C for the first quarter of next year
and that of Insat 4B towards 2006-end.
INSAT milestones
INSAT 1 Series
1A - April 10, 1982
1B - Aug 30, 1983
1C - July 21, 1988
1D - June 12, 1990
INSAT 2 Series
2A - July 10, 1992
2B - July 23, 1993
2C - Dec 7, 1995
2D - June 4, 1997
2DT ARABSAT-1C is acquired - April 3, 1999 and renamed as INSAT-2DT 2E
INSAT 3 Series
3A - April 10, 2003
3B - March 22, 2000
3C - January 24, 2002
3E - September 28, 2003
INSAT 4 Series
4A - Dec 22, 2005
4B - End of 2006 (under development)
4C - 1st Quarter of 2006 (under development)
4D - Spare (under development)
4E - In 2007 (under development)
4G - In 2007 (under development)
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