Cartosat 2B launch scheduled for 12th July 2010

wig · Post by **wig** » 12 Jul 2010 13:14

congratulations to all !

nits · Post by **nits** » 12 Jul 2010 13:48

Some amazing pics at Isro website... looks so majestic...

Gagan · Post by **Gagan** » 12 Jul 2010 14:33

Congratulations ISRO!
Great to see the next gen ISRO scientists coming of age.

Looking forward to GSLV-F06(GSAT-5) and PSLV-C16 (Resourcesat-2), and then the GSLV with the Indian CUS.

Godspeed !!

PratikDas · Post by **PratikDas** » 12 Jul 2010 14:51

Congratulations ISRO!

Thank you alok_c for sharing the YouTube clips!

SSSalvi · Post by **SSSalvi** » 12 Jul 2010 15:13

akshay wrote:Can we have some detail on the Orbits of this satellite? Are all three(Cartosat 2,2a,2b) in the same orbit or criss crossing.

Will provide as soon as orbit data is available in public domain .. in a day or two.

Presently I can generate for 2 and 2A .. but wait baa... sabar ka phal meetha hota hai na.

Just to answer your query partially .. the orbits will be more or less parallel .. not criss cross.

Vashishtha · Post by **Vashishtha** » 12 Jul 2010 15:39

guys, have you heard of this site: http://www.n2yo.com. This tracks satellites LIVE in real time on google maps with an easy interface. Here's a link to cartosat 2A:http://www.n2yo.com/?s=32783
Its been able to track most indian satellites. It also gives u the orbits and footprints and all necessary current stats.

SSSalvi · Post by **SSSalvi** » 12 Jul 2010 15:58

@ vashishtha

As mentioned in my previous post n2yo will provide coverage when the input data becomes available.

We will wait for public sources to provide data and then generate the required plots.

I had been regularly providing the satellite orbit coverage graphics in the past and will give now also.

You may also visit the following to listen to expert discussions:

http://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index. ... c=21398.15

http://www.space.com/missionlaunches/in ... 00709.html

Vashishtha · Post by **Vashishtha** » 12 Jul 2010 16:06

from where does this input data come?? I m sorry if this question has been answered before, lol i m still a noob at br

akshay · Post by **akshay** » 12 Jul 2010 16:21

Vashishtha wrote:guys, have you heard of this site: http://www.n2yo.com. This tracks satellites LIVE in real time on google maps with an easy interface. Here's a link to cartosat 2A:http://www.n2yo.com/?s=32783
Its been able to track most indian satellites. It also gives u the orbits and footprints and all necessary current stats.

This IS helpful ..super site..awaiting 2B input @SSSalvi.

SSSalvi · Post by **SSSalvi** » 12 Jul 2010 16:24

Vashishtha wrote:from where does this input data come?? I m sorry if this question has been answered before, lol i m still a noob at br

There are organisation which track any new object not logged before and try to generate its ephemeris by Kepelerian theories. Most of the rocket launches are pre-announced so there is no hue and cry but if any un-annonced object is detected then they try to discuss its origin.

This for the safety of mankind from mal-intentioned launches .. rockets and/or missiles. At least this the declared objective

Philip · Post by **Philip** » 12 Jul 2010 17:04

Gratters ISRO! What matters is that it is an INDIAN effort.The march towards total self-sufficiency will take a long time,but progress is being made steadily.The PSLV has perfromed beautifully yet again and should be the mainstay of laucnhing our mil-sats in the future until we perfect our GSLV.

Kanson · Post by **Kanson** » 12 Jul 2010 17:10

pgbhat wrote:^
^ Speaking about size.
'India losing satellites due to failure of imported components'

Satellite gaining weight and adding Video camera to the lower stages are two different things and can not be comparable. There is enough Oomph in the lower stages to carry these little cameras. Now-a-days cameras are very cheap and affordable and comes in lesser weight. In the days of video games ruling the roost among the younger generation with high speed actions, i think there is no other better way to capture the young generation's imagination by mounting the piggyback camers which gives the near experience of riding on the back of the launch vehicle.

And without forgetting, congratulations to everyone involved in this grand success. It is great feast to see the feat getting repeated successfully.

Prabu · Post by **Prabu** » 12 Jul 2010 17:26

Congradulations to ISRO team !

shiv · Post by **shiv** » 12 Jul 2010 18:03

Cameras are small - but telemetry from the rocket seems to come in short data bursts. Continuous video feed would require some form of transmission apparatus and energy (batteries?) for that.

The only realistic angle for a camera to point would be backwards and to one side - because the plume of each stage is huge. The first stage plume is twice as long as the rocket itself. And once the rocket tilts (within 30 sec) the view would be just sea. And if the rocket is spinning - then you will have a crazy spinning picture. Out of curiosity - apart from that famous Apollo stage separating shot how many other Euro, Russian or American sats have cameras showing the take off? Surely some must exist on YouTube by now if it is a commonly done thing.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 12 Jul 2010 18:12

nasa does it routinely I think now.

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_q ... amera&aq=f

Sanjay M · Post by **Sanjay M** » 12 Jul 2010 18:33

Once again, hearty congrats to ISRO!

But I too wish to also repeat that ISRO really needs to spice things up by mounting cameras on the rocket and providing live feed from them during the rocket's ascent to orbit. As mentioned, part of ISRO's job is to inspire youth, which they themselves often like to say, and it should be obvious to them that youth would be much more inspired by seeing actual visual footage of the flight from the rocket's viewpoint, as if we ourselves are traveling into space along with it. This is what will boost ISRO's standing with the public, and will give young children a chance to imagine being astronauts, and inspire them to work hard to succeed in science and engineering.

The news networks will also go ga-ga over getting to broadcast such footage. This will be so much more interesting to them than just showing the now familiar plotgraph.

ISRO can buy some high-tech ultra-compact foreign cameras to do the job. They don't have to be very heavy. Only one camera is necessary, and it could be mounted just below the faring of the top payload stage (that way when the faring separates, we'd be able to see that too.) I can't believe the small weight from this would pose an insurmountable problem.

And with GSLV it should be even easier, because of its extra payload capacity. I can't believe they'll be using every last kg in a 10-ton-to-LEO payload capacity. A camera could weigh less than 1-kg, and it only has to operate for 20-minutes.

When ISRO does the first manned flight, I even want high-speed gantry-mounted cameras showing the rocket sliding past them in slow motion, so we can read the letters I-N-D-I-A as they move past, while the rocket leaves the tower. That's now NASA does it on the major launches, and it really looks good.

Bade · Post by **Bade** » 12 Jul 2010 18:56

Congrats ISRO on the launch.

If people are asking for cameras on board for PR, I have been asking for a spiced up web-page with lot more details on each mission and its achievements to inspire the next generation. This should be easier to do with least amount of stress on mission objectives, and minimal PR budget. It is a shame considering the IT expertise that India advertises. There is hardly a science component explained in layman terms even for the Chandrayaan missions and many more planetary missions to come. PRL guys should play a lead role in this kind of evangelism with ISRO providing the resources.

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 12 Jul 2010 19:11

Shiv, Youtube has a number of videos from SpaceX launches. They even show stage separation. Tremendous PR value.

Vashishtha · Post by **Vashishtha** » 12 Jul 2010 19:18

a question to SSSalvi:
When you plot the polar orbit of a satellite, is it a pure sine wave??

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 12 Jul 2010 19:26

ISRO Press Release
http://www.isro.org/pressrelease/script ... Jul12_2010

krisna · Post by **krisna** » 12 Jul 2010 19:31

congrats to ISRO once again for its PSLV launches which have becoming routine successfull.
Go IsRO Go.
Looking for Indian GSLV success too.

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 12 Jul 2010 19:55

Congrats ISRO. And, thanks S^3! Pass on the good word.

Arunkumar · Post by **Arunkumar** » 12 Jul 2010 19:58

congrats Isro. keep up the good work.

sawant · Post by **sawant** » 12 Jul 2010 20:17

Have to say ... considering crores of rupees are spent.. and some in case of cryogenic engines.... we go for a 'live' test instead of testing on the ground... would not it be better to have cameras etc at certain stages instead of always relying on non-visual sensors... PR aside it may provide visual cues when sensors fail or data is insufficient to conclude malfunctions...

SSSalvi · Post by **SSSalvi** » 12 Jul 2010 20:47

Vashishtha wrote:a question to SSSalvi:
When you plot the polar orbit of a satellite, is it a pure sine wave??

This/similar points were discussed earlier.
Please go through the posts near the following link:

http://forums.bharat-rakshak.com/viewto ... &start=400

If you have any more queries not covered there please throw them across .. will try to answer whatever I can.

@ ramana

Thanks Ramana.

Like you I too can only congrat ISRO.. I have retired 2 years ago on superannuation.
Can't pass on the good word.

bodhi · Post by **bodhi** » 12 Jul 2010 20:50

Nicely done...flawless indeed

Gagan · Post by **Gagan** » 12 Jul 2010 21:11

On the subject of cameras on launchers, this is where the other launchers appear to place their cameras.
The nose tip camera I am not too sure can see as long as the heat shield is present. I think it is underneath the heat shield, and becomes operational once the heat shield is dispensed with.

This effort is "chota muh badi baat" on my part for engineers who've designed the mighty PSLV.

Varoon Shekhar · Post by **Varoon Shekhar** » 12 Jul 2010 21:21

From the BBC website: Ship tracking satellite launched from India.

"Norway has launched the innovative AISSat-1 spacecraft to monitor shipping in its territorial waters.

The small satellite will track vessels over 300 gross tonnes by picking up the signals from their AIS (Automatic Identification System) transponders."

Just a small technicality- this is the first time a mention is made of a Norweigan satellite being launched from India. I thought it was a Swiss, a Canadian and an Algerian sat on board.

Jayram · Post by **Jayram** » 12 Jul 2010 21:22

BBC article on the launch of one of the 5 satellites that made it into orbit with PSLV today..
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science_and_ ... 599774.stm.
Apparently the Norwegions have made contact with the Satellite. ISRO picture made it in there too..
The launch itself is not the main story but the satellite is as it should be. Congrats ISRO.

Vashishtha · Post by **Vashishtha** » 12 Jul 2010 21:40

Thanks buddy, after some imagination i got it!!!! its similar to an experiment we did in physics lab in grade 11th on how a rotating projection centered in a circle gives u a sinusoid.

slightly OT but to sssalvi, after reading through that thread:
Dude, u used to work for ISRO!!!! i thought only civilian middle class aam SDRE'S were on brf!!

Sridhar · Post by **Sridhar** » 12 Jul 2010 22:55

Congrats, ISRO!

anchal · Post by **anchal** » 12 Jul 2010 23:57

Congrats ISRO!

Vipul · Post by **Vipul** » 13 Jul 2010 04:26

Congrats ISRO.

Khalsa · Post by **Khalsa** » 13 Jul 2010 04:26

Congratulations ISRO .. well done Chaps !!

Masaru · Post by **Masaru** » 13 Jul 2010 05:56

10 eyes in the sky give India space edge
Excerpts

A combination of four Cartosats (1,2,2A and 2B) hovering 630 km above earth allows India to keep areas under close and prolonged surveillance. Multiple satellites ensure that a particular geographical area can be `revisited' every 48 hours.

Three of the cartosats now in orbit have a spatial resolution of less than one metre (0.8 m for Cartosat-2B), which means that they can observe and photograph objects smaller than a car. Cartosat-2B's steerability of 26 degrees allows it to stay focused on the object for a longer duration while on the move as compared to the other remote sensing satellites, which have a range of applications. Risat-1 is scheduled for launch late this year.

Cartosats use panchromatic cameras to take black and white pictures of earth. While cartosat-1 weighed 1560 kg and had a spatial resolution of 2.5 metres and a swathe of 30 km, the later versions had a finer spatial resolution of less than a metre and a swathe of 9.6 km.

shiv · Post by **shiv** » 13 Jul 2010 06:50

sawant wrote:Have to say ... considering crores of rupees are spent.. and some in case of cryogenic engines.... we go for a 'live' test instead of testing on the ground... would not it be better to have cameras etc at certain stages instead of always relying on non-visual sensors... PR aside it may provide visual cues when sensors fail or data is insufficient to conclude malfunctions...

Yes - but those cameras are better off imaging crucial components rather than earth sea and sky.

Secondly - only humans need visual images in the VIBGYOR wavelengths. The "information" about systems could come from other EM radiation. A component inside a rocket sitting in pitch darkness might work better with non visual sensors.

shiv · Post by **shiv** » 13 Jul 2010 07:02

er - I am no rocket scientist but I would like to point out a few things about allowing a few extra kilos on the flight because of spare capacity - like driving a four seat car with driver alone.

First of all - anyone who has watched that video of the PSLV taking off should realise that there is an incredibly precise science that is working there. The rocket has to go into a precise orbit and reach a precise velocity High school level (10th standards pass) physics will tell you that:

Force = Mass x acceleration

Force is the power of your rocket engine, Mass is weight

Unless force and mass are calculated to fine decimal places one cannot have an accurate rocket launch.

So it is a myth to say that a few extra kgs of unnecessary stuff can be thrown in here and there in terms of cameras and batteries and video data transmission equipment

Secondly, spaceflight costs range from $5000 per kg to $ 40,000 per kg. One video of the PSLV going up at the launch pad is far more spectacular (IMO) than the pointless 4-6 minutes videos of a rocket exhaust plume. I watched all the videos that were linked above and did not think there was anything great about them. But those are my views. By all means let us have a camera - but none of these videos is particularly exciting - watching a plume of fire for 4 minutes and a receding earth with no detail or landmark occupying less that 50% of the view and 3 seconds of a rocket stage falling away.

SSridhar · Post by **SSridhar** » 13 Jul 2010 07:29

Cartosat-2B to beam its first images today

The first image from the advanced remote sensing satellite, Cartosat-2B, placed into the orbit by the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C-15) on Monday, will be received on Tuesday.

The picture is expected to be beamed to the Satellite Data Reception Centre of the National Remote Sensing Centre at Shadnagar

After a month-long sequencing and calibration relating to various parameters to establish th

SSridhar · Post by **SSridhar** » 13 Jul 2010 07:33

The Studsat Project

Studsat is a pico satellite with an imaging camera and several frontline technologies have been employed in it. The students had built a clean room to test the satellite and a ground station in Bangalore to receive signals.

“The contagion” has caught on and four other nano satellites are in the pipeline, according to Mr. Raghava Murthy. The three-kg “Jugnu” satellite is being built by the students of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur. A 3.5-kg satellite called Pradhan is being built by students of IIT-Mumbai. Two more satellites, each weighing less than 10 kg, are being assembled by students of SRM University and Sathyabhama University, both in Chennai.

Anusat, a 40-kg satellite, built by Anna University, Chennai, was put in orbit by an earlier PSLV mission.

Studsat employed several frontline technologies that were designed and developed by the 35 students themselves with ISRO guidance. It took the students about a year-and-a-half to design, build and test Studsat. (The project began in August 2008). The lead institute in the project was Nitte Meenakshi Institute of Technology (NMIT), Bangalore.

The satellite has a camera which can take pictures in the HAM code. Pictures of the earth taken by the camera can help in predicting the weather. The resolution of the images, taken from an altitude of 637 km, is 90 metres. “The ground station built by the students in Bangalore is one of the achievements of this project,” said Professor Satyanarayana.

disha · Post by **disha** » 13 Jul 2010 07:39

shiv wrote: So it is a myth to say that a few extra kgs of unnecessary stuff can be thrown in here and there in terms of cameras and batteries and video data transmission equipment

Secondly, spaceflight costs range from $5000 per kg to $ 40,000 per kg. One video of the PSLV going up at the launch pad is far more spectacular (IMO) than the pointless 4-6 minutes videos of a rocket exhaust plume. I watched all the videos that were linked above and did not think there was anything great about them. But those are my views. By all means let us have a camera - but none of these videos is particularly exciting - watching a plume of fire for 4 minutes and a receding earth with no detail or landmark occupying less that 50% of the view and 3 seconds of a rocket stage falling away.

The above should be re-read by persons wanting to put video cameras on rockets. Here are further thoughts:

1. The designs for PSLV/GSLV are frozen. That is all aspects, not just launch trajectories but transmission/tracking rates, channels are analyzed, validated and cast in stone. Any change in the design should be rightly considered as redesigning the system. It is costly. And no, it is not a hamara bajaaj scooter where one can go ahead and set up a jugaad to listen live streaming radio on the back seat.

2. If rocket staging falling away is the only interesting thing, that can be done by computer simulation. Okay spend some extra money on the computers to get better visuals.

3. Why are we aping the west? Just because SpaceX (let us see when they will have a fully commercial launch with a meaningful payload) has it does not mean we should have it.

If the goal is to educate, one can invest in high speed cameras on the ground! Complete with Sound and recording of vibrations. Further this setup will be useful when the human spaceflights start from SHAR. So instead of shelling out dollars behind high speed cameras that burn up in atmosphere, we are better off setting up a ground segment for it. And let ISRO create sports cards of it, or screen savers and market it! Spend the money behind further science segments on Dookhdarshan.