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ISRO to boost satellite's life by 5 years
By siliconindia
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Thursday, 01 October 2009, 23:12 IST
Bangalore: The Chandrayan saga has boosted the confidence of the Indian scientists, which is explicit in their next endeavor to boost the life of geostationary satellites by upto five years. The space scientists have developed electric propulsion technology, which would extend their life-span from the current 10 years to 15 years.
The system -- plasma thrusters - would be tested in GSAT-4 spacecraft slated to be launched on board GSLV later this year, ISRO chairman Madhavan Nair told PTI.
"Electric propulsion is going to be a unique thing. It will be used in GSAT-4. This is a concept we are going to prove in this (GSAT-4). Once proven, it can be adopted as standard for future geostationary orbits", he said.
So far, ISRO had been using chemical propulsion for station-keeping, altitude control, precision spacecraft control, stabilisation and orientation. With the use of electric propulsion, the life of the spacecraft can be enhanced, Nair, also Secretary in the Department of Space, said.
