ISRO gears up for 100th launch from Sriharikota in January
What's the story
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is gearing up for a major milestone with a Geosynchronous Launch Vehicle (GSLV) mission planned for January.
This will be the 100th launch from the Sriharikota spaceport, ISRO Chairman S Somanath said.
The GSLV mission comes after the successful PSLV-C60 mission, which was the 99th launch from Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.
Successful launch
PSLV-C60 mission: A significant step for ISRO
The PSLV-C60 mission successfully placed two spacecraft into a circular orbit for conducting the Space Docking Experiment (SpaDeX).
"So, all of you have seen the majestic lift-off and the launch of the SpaDeX rocket, and for us, this is the 99th launch of any vehicle from Satish Dhawan Space Centre so that is also a very important number," Somanath said.
Upcoming launches
ISRO's future plans and upcoming missions
Looking ahead, Somanath revealed that ISRO has a number of missions lined up for 2025.
The first of these will be the GSLV launching the navigation satellite NVS-02 in January.
This comes after the successful deployment of a navigation satellite onboard the GSLV-F12/NVS-01 rocket in May 2023.
The NVS-01 was the first of the second-generation satellites meant for Navigation with Indian Constellation (NavIC) services.
Launch strategy
ISRO's strategic approach to satellite launches
Somanath also explained how the PSLV-C60 rocket launch was rescheduled from its original time of 9:58pm to 10pm on December 30.
He said that scientists carry out a conjunction study to ensure that a satellite doesn't come too close to another one while flying in the same orbit.
If such proximity is detected, adjustments are made either by delaying or advancing the launch.