ISRO puts 'lightest satellite' Kalamsat V2 into orbit

Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) has launched the Kalamsat-V2 from Sriharikota space centre.

Kalamsat-V2

The satellite is named after former president and Indian scientist Dr Abdul Kalam. The features of the Kalamsat V2 satellite are:

• It is the lightest satellite to be ever built and launched into orbit and it is also Isro’s first launch of a satellite built by a private firm.
• It is a communications satellite for ham radio transmission, a form of wireless communication used by amateurs for non-commercial activities.
• The satellite is being built by students belonging to Space Kidz India, a Chennai-based space education firm. The satellite cost 1.2m Indian rupees and was built during the span of six days.
• The Satellite was launched using Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) – a four-stage rocket.

Isro reclaims the dead rocket stage

Isro made an attempt to recover the dead rocket stage in this launch. With PSLV rockets the first three stages usually drop back to Earth; its fourth and final stage using liquid propellants is stopped and restarted several times to get a spacecraft into just the right orbit.
Isro converted this fourth stage into an experimental orbital platform to conduct small experiments in space. This experimental orbital platform will aid in carrying out experiments in a near zero-gravity environment. For the first time, Isro is conducting such an experiment to reclaim a dead rocket stage and to keep it alive.

Month: Current Affairs - January, 2019