ISRO to be back with launches in Nov.-Dec.:

ISRO to be back with launches in Nov.-Dec.:

Context

• The PSLV-C39 mission of August 31 failed to release a back-up navigation satellite into space.

What is PSLV?

• The Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, commonly known by its abbreviation PSLV, is an expendable launch system developed and operated by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
• It was developed to allow India to launch its Indian Remote Sensing (IRS) satellites into Sun-synchronous orbits, a service that was, until the advent of the PSLV, commercially available only from Russia
• Some notable payloads launched by PSLV include India’s first lunar probe Chandrayaan-1, India’s first interplanetary mission, Mangalyaan (Mars orbiter) and India’s first space observatory, Astrosat.

What is Antrix?

• Antrix Corporation Limited is the commercial arm of the Indian Space Research Organisation(ISRO).
• Antrix Corporation had made the PSLV rocket a globally famous and reliable space launch vehicle; it had lifted more than 200 small foreign satellites over years.
• On 15 February 2017, India successfully launched a payload of 104 foreign satellites in polar orbit around the Earth using PSLV tripling the previous record held by Russia for most number of satellites sent to space in a single launch.

What is IRNSS-1H?

• IRNSS-1H series satellite: The 1,425 kg-heavy satellite that was to join the NavIC constellation and provide navigation services for the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
• The IRNSS-1H was India’s eighth navigation satellite which was to be launched into an elliptical Sub-Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (Sub-GSTO)
• The satellite would have served as a backup for IRNSS-1A, one of the seven satellites of the constellation whose three rubidium atomic clocks on board had stopped functioning.
• The satellite carried two types of payloads – for navigation and ranging.

What is NavIC or IRNSS?

• According The Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) with an operational name of NAVIC  is an autonomous regional satellite navigation system, that provides accurate real-time positioning and timing services. It covers India and a region extending 1,500 km (930 mi) around it, with plans for further extension.
• The system at-present consists of a constellation of 7 satellites, with two additional satellites on ground as stand-by.

Applications of IRNSS

• Alerts regarding bad weather or high tide could also be given to fishermen using the messaging services under NavIC. They can also be warned from crossing international boundaries.
• Merchant ships can use navigational information to track routes in the ocean.
• Search and rescue operations will also get easier. The position service of NavIC will help transport operators in tracking their goods. There can be better traffic management in cities, towns and highways.
• Some of the other applications include tracking movement of trains, alerting commuters at unmanned railway crossings, managing resources using geo-tagging and geo-fencing and management of land surveys and port operations using NavIC signals.

Way forward

• The Indian Space Research Organisation expects to resume launch of satellites in a couple of months once its failure analysis committee releases its report. The committee is conducting tests on why the PSLV-C39 mission of August 31 failed to release a back-up navigation satellite into space.