104 satellites put in orbit in a single mission, 88 can photograph Earth daily.
Joy and celebrations broke out among scientists at the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) as the space agency did the country proud by creating a world record on Wednesday. Ahmedabad had reason to celebrate as well as the Space Application Centre (SAC-ISRO) in the city played an important role in the project. SAC-ISRO, Ahmedabad’s contributions to ISRO’s incredible feat include origami lenses used in the rocket, and the 2D camera and various light illumination techniques used in the launch of the 104 satellites.
“The origami lens used in the rocket were made in Ahmedabad. We have also worked on different illuminating techniques so that the rocket is not affected by the radiation it is subjected to,” an overjoyed Tapan Misra, Director, SAC-ISRO, Ahmedabad, told DNA in a telephonic conversation from Sriharikota spaceport.
Earlier, at precisely 9.28 am at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, ISRO launched 104 satellites on its PSLV-C37 rocket, making it the highest number of satellites launched in a single mission. Through this feat, it broke the record held by Russia which had sent 37 satellites on a single mission in 2014. The PSLV-C37 rocket carrying the satellites included three Indian and 101 satellites belonging to six countries — 96 from the US and one each from Switzerland, the Netherlands, Israel, UAE and Kazakhstan. “It was a complex mission,” admitted PSLV-C37 Project Director B Jayakumar.
From navigation tools to contributing to the launching process of 104 satellites from a single rocket, Ahmedabad’s Space Application Centre (SAC-ISRO) has played a major role in scripting history.
“The origami lens used in the rocket was made in Ahmedabad. We have also worked on different illuminating techniques so that the rocket is not affected by the radiation it is subjected to,” said an overjoyed Tapan Misra, Director, SAC-ISRO, Ahmedabad. He was speaking in a telephonic conversation with DNA from Sriharikota spaceport in Andhra Pradesh. Besides the origami lenses, the 2D camera and various light illumination techniques in the launch of the 104 satellites, have been Ahmedabad’s contribution.
“From ensuring that the 2D camera and its real time recording takes place flawlessly, to making sure that all the electronic devices are functioning during the launch- we have worked hard for this day. It is exciting that our unit has contributed from navigation to the instruments in the rocket,” added Tapan. This is ISRO’s second successful attempt after the launch of 23 satellites in a single rocket in June 2015. “It is a proud moment for us. The contribution of the Ahmedabad centre in this launch has been commendable. We will now try to maximise the return of our launch vehicle,” said AS Kiran Kumar, ISRO chairman from Sriharikota.
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 "Isro, space, NASA, science, Tapan Misra, SAC-ISRO, Indian Space Research Organisation, Sriharikota spaceport, PSLV-C37, 2D camer")
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