38248 - RISAT 1

RISAT 1 (Radar Imaging Satellite 1), an ISRO Earth observation satellite, was launched from Sriharikota Island on 2012 April 26 at 00:17 UT by a Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-XL). The satellite weighed 1,858 kg making it the most massive spacecraft launched by a PSLV to date. RISAT 1 is the first satellite of the RISAT series to be built but the second to be launched. RISAT 2 was launched in 2009. RISAT 1 will be used for disaster prediction, agriculture, forestry, and the high-resolution pictures and microwave imaging could also be used for defense purposes. It carries a C-band microwave synthetic aperture radar, operating on a frequency of 5.35 gigahertz. Its twin solar arrays provide around 2.2 kilowatts of power to the spacecrafts systems; the spacecraft is also equipped with a 70 amp-hour nickel-hydrogen battery which the solar arrays charge. It is the country's first indigenous radar observation satellite. RISAT 1 is expected to operate in orbit for five years, making approximately fourteen orbits every day with a ground track which repeat every 25 days.

The initial orbital parameters were period = 95.44 minutes, apogee = 549.6 km, perigee = 530.3 km, inclination = 97.6 degrees on 2012 May 2 at 04:52:46 UTC.

Facts in Brief

Launch Date: 2012-04-26
Launch Vehicle: PSLV-XL
Launch Site: Sriharikota, India
Mass: 1858.0 kg