Marking a significant milestone, the Indian Space Research Organisation successfully launched its 100th mission as a GSLV rocket carrying the navigation satellite NVS-02 lifted off from the Sriharikota spaceport on Wednesday.
This mission also marked the first under new ISRO Chairman V. Narayanan, who recently assumed office, and is the agency's maiden launch of the year.
The 50.9-meter-tall GSLV-F15 rocket soared into the sky at 6:23 a.m., following a 27.30-hour countdown, leaving behind a trail of thick fumes.
#100thLaunch:
Congratulations @isro for achieving the landmark milestone of #100thLaunch from #Sriharikota.
It's a privilege to be associated with the Department of Space at the historic moment of this record feat.
Team #ISRO, you have once again made India proud with… pic.twitter.com/lZp1eV4mmLJanuary 29, 2025AdvertisementThe mission follows the successful launch of NVS-01, the first of the second-generation Navigation with Indian Constellation, or NavIC satellites, by GSLV-F12 on May 29, 2023.
GSLV-F15 is the 17th flight of the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle and the 11th equipped with an indigenous cryogenic upper stage. The rocket's payload fairing, made of metal, has a diameter of 3.4 meters.
AdvertisementThe NVS-02 satellite, weighing approximately 2,250 kg, will be placed in a Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit. Designed and developed by the UR Rao Satellite Centre, the satellite includes navigation payloads in L1, L5, and S bands, along with a C-band ranging payload similar to its predecessor, NVS-01.
This mission is part of the NavIC initiative — India's regional navigation satellite system, which offers precise position, velocity, and timing data across the Indian subcontinent and up to 1,500 km beyond its borders.
NavIC provides two types of services — standard positioning service, or SPS, that offers a position accuracy better than 20 metres and timing accuracy better than 40 nanoseconds; and restricted service, or RS, which is a secured service for authorised users.
NavIC's second-generation satellites, including NVS-02, are designed to enhance the system's capabilities and ensure continuity of services.
The key applications for the NVS-02 satellite include terrestrial, aerial, and maritime navigation; precision agriculture; fleet management; and location-based services in mobile devices.
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