Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

India's EDUSAT launched successfully

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • India's EDUSAT launched successfully

    EDUSAT launched successfully

    Sriharikota, Sept. 20 (PTI): EDUSAT, the world's first and India's exclusive satellite for educational services, was successfully launched from the Space Centre here this evening despite murky weather conditions.

    The 1950-kg. satellite, the heaviest built by the Indian Space Research Organisation, and carried by the 49-metre Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV-F-01) was placed in the Geosynchronous stationary orbit, about 17 minutes after the vehicle's perfect take-off at 4.01 pm from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre here into the murky sky.

    The satellite, which will provide a fillip to distance education in the country, has a mission life of seven years. It will be co-located with Kalpana-1 and INSAT-3C satellites already in orbit. This is the first operational flight of GSLV.

    Scores of scientists, including the ISRO Chairman, Madhavan Nair, and his predecessor, Dr Kasturi Rangan, witnessed the "perfect" launch.

    Though in his immediate reaction, Nair said India had once again proved that it can undertake satellite projects with "perfection and thoroughness" to meet any global standards, at a press briefing later, he said the launch took place against "many odds" as the scientists were worried over atmospheric conditions.

    "Yesterday, there was heavy downpour and lightning. We virtually thought of postponing the launch," Nair said adding "scientists, using radar systems, looked at meteorological parameters and by 9.30 am today, we took a decision to go ahead with the final countdown."

    "This is one of the finest missions ISRO has had. The launch went off well without any deviation and on dot," Nair said.

    The main motor, and various stages including the cryogenic stage supplied by Russia, and all on-board computers performed well as planned.

    The scope of the Edusat programmes would be realised in three phases. In the first phase, Visvesvariah Technological University in Karnataka, Y B Chavan State University in Maharashtra and Rajiv Gandhi Technical university in Madhya Pradesh would be covered.

    The second phase would see inclusion of two more States and a national institution and in the third and final phase, Edusat network would become fully operational.

    Nair said there was heavy shortage of quality teachers in various fields. "There is also need to reach the remote parts of the country and providing adult literacy programme. All these are planned to be fulfilled by distant connectivity which can be achieved by Edusat."

    "We will be able to link various institutions at higher education levels, primary schools, secondary schools and also the villages," Nair said adding "we have already linked the Visvesvariah University with 100 engineering colleges and the programmes are being conducted on a regular basis."

    "We have already signed an MOU with IGNOU and will soon be signing with All India Council for Technical Education. In the next three months, we will sign with 20 major educational institutions in the country and discussions are already on with various agencies."

    The Edusat has specially been configurated for the audio-visual medium, employing digital interactive classrooms and multi-media and multi-centric systems.

    The satellite will have multiple regional beams covering different parts of India -- five Ku-band transponders with spot beams covering, northern, north-eastern, eastern, southern and western regions, a Ku-band transponder with its 'footprint' covering the mainland and six other C-band transponders with their 'footprints' covering entire country.

    The concept of beaming educational programmes through satellites was effectively demonstrated for the first time in India in 1975-76 through Satellite Instructional Television Experiment (SITE), conducted using the American Application Technology Satellite.

    Later, with the commissioning of INSAT system in 1983, a variety of educational programmes were telecast. With the success of the INSAT-based educational services, a need was felt to launch a satellite dedicated exclusively for educational services and the ISRO conceived the Edusat project in October 2002.

    The cost of the satellite was Rs. 90 crores and that of the launch vehicle around Rs.160 crores.
    http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus...d~successfully
    A grain of wheat eclipsed the sun of Adam !!

  • #2
    India launches learning satellite

    The satellite will help in linking classrooms across India
    India has launched its first satellite to be used for expanding the country's educational network.

    The Edusat, weighing around 2,000kg, will help train teachers and provide primary and secondary education by linking classrooms across India.

    It is hoped the satellite will help revolutionise learning in India by taking education to remote classrooms.

    About a third of India's billion-plus population cannot read and only 13% finish high school.

    'Beautiful bird'

    The Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) took nearly three years to build the $17m satellite.

    It was sent into space by India's locally-made geo-synchronous satellite launch vehicle from Sriharikota island in southern Andhra Pradesh state.

    "We have got a perfect launch. I hope in the next few days we will have major operations running," PS Goel, director of the satellite centre, told reporters.

    "It will be another beautiful bird in the sky spreading education."

    A spokesman for Isro told the French news agency AFP that universities in three Indian states would be linked through the satellite, which has a mission life of seven years.

    The states are Karnataka in the south, Maharashtra in the west and the central state of Madhya Pradesh.

    In the second phase, the satellite will link more than 1,000 classrooms in two more states.

    Isro chairman Madhavan Nair said the satellite would help beam lectures by eminent persons to classrooms across the country.

    Launch history

    India launches its own satellites and plans to enter the lucrative commercial satellite launch market.

    In September 2002, India successfully launched its first weather satellite to help the country predict cyclones and storms more accurately.

    In 2001, it successfully tested its first geostationary launch vehicle, which is capable of launching bigger satellites into a higher orbit.

    India also plans to send a spacecraft to the moon by 2008.

    http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3672608.stm
    A grain of wheat eclipsed the sun of Adam !!

    Comment


    • #3
      Second launch pad to become operational by year end

      Sriharikota, Sept. 20 (PTI): The second state-of-the-art satellite launch pad here is expected to become operational by the end of this year, Indian Space Research Organisation Chairman Madhavan Nair, said here today.

      "The second pad is expected to increase the frequency of satellite launches from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre and it has been so designed to reduce the time for integration and launch," he told reporters after the successful launch of EDUSAT, India's exclusive satellite for educational services.

      All the construction activities had been completed and the testing was progressing "very satisfactorily," the ISRO Chairman said.

      Responding to questions, Nair said the commercial wing of ISRO, Antrix Corporation, which provides space services and products globally and for Indian users, recorded a revenue of Rs. 300 crores last year as against Rs.100 crores a year ago.

      The Antrix Corporation recorded a profit of Rs. 300 crores last year."Our space images are world-class. We are able to compete in the international market and more than 15 per cent of the global sales was done by Antrix."

      http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus...0409202026.htm
      A grain of wheat eclipsed the sun of Adam !!

      Comment


      • #4



        http://www.isro.org/Edusat/Cover.htm
        A grain of wheat eclipsed the sun of Adam !!

        Comment


        • #5
          thats good news.cheers ! :)
          Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie!'...till you can find a rock. ;)

          Comment

          Working...
          X