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There may be a three-minute delay in the launch of its Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle PSLV-C23 from the Sriharikota spaceport on Monday, owing to the probability of some space debris getting in the way of the rocket, Indian Space Research Organisation chairman K Radhakrishnan told TOI.
"The mission readiness review committee, which met on Friday morning, considered the probability of the rocket encountering space debris and some of the members recommended a slight delay in the time of lift-off. So the launch may now happen at 9.52am, instead of at 9.49am as planned earlier," Radhakrishnan said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be witnessing the exclusive commercial launch of PSLV-C23 that would carry five foreign satellites to orbit.
India is a member of a consortium of space-faring nations that share information on space debris collated and uploaded by Nasa.
Around 13,000 objects categorised as space debris (left behind by parts of old satellites and left-overs from other rocket parts) have been counted in the low-earth orbit where satellites are launched.
"Space debris pose the threat of collision with the rocket en route its journey to space or during the injection of satellites. Gauging their proximity and velocity, we alter the launch time," the Isro chairman said. By delaying the launch by a few minutes, the rocket evades the debris by thousands of kilometers.
On October 12, 2011, Isro delayed the launch of PSLV-C18 by a minute to avoid space debris. The rocket later injected four satellites including the Indo-French weather satellite Megha-Tropiques into a safe orbit.
PSLV-C23 would carry SIPCOT-7, a 714kg French satellite, as the main payload. It will also launch the 14kg AISAT of Germany, Canadian satellites CAN-X4 and CAN-X5, each weighing 15kg and VELOX-1, a 7kg satellite of Singapore.
Isro has launched 26 PSLVs so far, and the last 25 launches have been successful.
Space debris may delay PSLV-C23 launch by three minutes - The Times of India
"The mission readiness review committee, which met on Friday morning, considered the probability of the rocket encountering space debris and some of the members recommended a slight delay in the time of lift-off. So the launch may now happen at 9.52am, instead of at 9.49am as planned earlier," Radhakrishnan said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be witnessing the exclusive commercial launch of PSLV-C23 that would carry five foreign satellites to orbit.
India is a member of a consortium of space-faring nations that share information on space debris collated and uploaded by Nasa.
Around 13,000 objects categorised as space debris (left behind by parts of old satellites and left-overs from other rocket parts) have been counted in the low-earth orbit where satellites are launched.
"Space debris pose the threat of collision with the rocket en route its journey to space or during the injection of satellites. Gauging their proximity and velocity, we alter the launch time," the Isro chairman said. By delaying the launch by a few minutes, the rocket evades the debris by thousands of kilometers.
On October 12, 2011, Isro delayed the launch of PSLV-C18 by a minute to avoid space debris. The rocket later injected four satellites including the Indo-French weather satellite Megha-Tropiques into a safe orbit.
PSLV-C23 would carry SIPCOT-7, a 714kg French satellite, as the main payload. It will also launch the 14kg AISAT of Germany, Canadian satellites CAN-X4 and CAN-X5, each weighing 15kg and VELOX-1, a 7kg satellite of Singapore.
Isro has launched 26 PSLVs so far, and the last 25 launches have been successful.
Space debris may delay PSLV-C23 launch by three minutes - The Times of India
