ISRO launches its PSLV-C55 with 2 Singaporean satellites for Earth observation

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on Saturday launched its PSLV-C55 with two Singaporean satellites for Earth observation, from Sriharikota.

The 44.4-metre tall rocket is a dedicated commercial mission through NSIL with TeLEOS-2 as the primary satellite and Lumelite-4 as a co-passenger satellite and launched into an Eastward low inclination orbit. The satellites weigh about 741 kg and 16 kg, respectively.

According to a statement from the ISRO, the TeLEOS-2 is a synthetic aperture radar satellite developed under a partnership between the Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA), representing the Government of Singapore and ST Engineering.

"Once deployed and operational, it will be used to support the satellite imagery requirements of various agencies within the Government of Singapore. TeLEOS-2 carries a Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) payload. TeLEOS-2 will be able to provide all-weather day and night coverage, and capable of imaging at 1m full-polarimetric resolution," it said.

The press release also stated that the LUMELITE-4 satellite is co-developed by the Institute for Infocomm Research (I2R) of A*STAR and Satellite Technology and Research Centre (STAR) of the National University of Singapore.

It is an advanced 12U satellite developed for the technological demonstration of the High-Performance Space-borne VHF Data Exchange System (VDES). Using the VDES communication payload developed by I2R and STAR's scalable satellite bus platform, it aims to augment Singapore's e-navigation maritime safety and benefit the global shipping community.

"The mission has the PSLV Orbital Experimental Module (POEM), where the spent PS4 stage of the launch vehicle would be utilized as an orbital platform to carryout scientific experiments through non-separating payloads. The payloads belong to ISRO/Department of Space, Bellatrix, Dhruva Space, and Indian Institute of Astrophysics," the ISRO said.

Watch The Launch Here

The netizens can launch the event PSLV-C55 on the official YouTube page of the ISRO.