Polar Satellite Launc Vehicle (PSLV)

The second operational launch of India's Polar Satellite Launc Vehicle (PSLV) will place three satellites - Indian Remote Sensing Satellite (IRS-P4) as the main payload and Korean KITSAT-3 and German DLR-TUBSAT as auxilary payloads - into a 727 km polar sunsynchronous orbit. It is for the first time that ISRO is launching three satellites in a single vehicle. While IRS-P4(OCEANSAT) Weight 1050 kg, KITSAT-3 and DLR-TUBSAT weight 107 kg and 45 kg respectively. The two auxilary payloads are mounted on PSLV equipment bay diametrically opposite to each other. The main payload, IRS-P4,is mounted on top of the equipment bay as in earlier flights of PSLV. In the flight sequence, IRS-P4 is injected first, followed by KITSAT-3 and DLR-TUBSAT in that order.

With a lift of weight of 294 tone, the 44.4m tall PSLV is a four stage vehicle employing solid propellant stages in the first and third stages and liquid propellant stages in the second and fourth stages. It also employs six solid propellant strap-on motors for the first stage. PSLV is launched from ISRO's Satish Dhawan Space Centre, SHAR, Sriharikota, about 100 km north of Chennai.

The first operational flight of PSLV took place on September 29,1997 which has put IRS-1D into polar sunsynchronous orbit. Antrix Corporation, the commercial front of the Department of Space, markets PSLV launch services on behalf of ISRO.