ISRO Successfully Launches Earth Observation Satellite from Sriharikota

The Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) successfully launched an earth observation satellite (EOS), from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota,  andhra Pradesh, carrying payloads featuring new technology developments in satellite mainframe systems on board a Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) The SSLV will be transferred to private industry in time.

Isro in a post on X said, “The third developmental flight of SSLV is successful”, it added, “The SSLV-D3 placed EOS-08 precisely into the orbit. This marks the successful completion of ISRO/DOS's SSLV Development Project. With technology transfer, the Indian industry and NSIL will now produce SSLV for commercial missions”.

The smallest SSLV rocket, which measures about 34 metres in height, was launched at 9:19 a.m. EOS-08, the satellite onboard the rocket, is designed for applications in diverse fields, from soil moisture assessment to disaster management.

The primary objectives of the SSLV-D3-EOS-08 mission are designing and developing a microsatellite, creating payload instruments compatible with the microsatellite bus, and incorporating new technologies required for future operational satellites.

Isro completes the developmental flight of its smallest rocket with this mission, which can carry satellites weighing up to 500 kg and put them in low earth orbit (LEO) of up to 500 km above the earth’s surface. This will give a boost up to NewSpace India Ltd, the commercial arm of Isro, as it looks to take up launches using such SSLVs.

The satellite carries three payloads--Electro Optical Infrared Payload (EOIR), SAC; Global Navigation Satellite System-Reflectometry payload (GNSS-R), SAC; and SiC UV Dosimeter, LEOS.

The first payload will take images in the mid-wave infrared (MIR) and long-wave infrared (LWIR) bands for various applications such as satellite-based surveillance, disaster monitoring, environmental monitoring, fire detection, volcanic activities, and industrial and power plant disasters.

The third payload will observe the ultraviolet irradiance at the view port of the crew module in the Gaganyaan Mission. Meanwhile the second payload will show the capability of using GNSS-R based remote sensing for ocean surface winds, soil moisture, cryosphere applications over the Himalayan region, flood detection, and in-land water body detection.