ISRO's PSLV-C61 Mission Fails to Launch Earth Observation Satellite

ISRO's PSLV-C61 Mission Encountered Issues

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) was unable to launch the Earth observation satellite on Sunday due to a pressure-related issue in the third stage of the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C61) rocket. This information was shared by ISRO's chairman, V. Narayanan.

This mission marked ISRO's 101st attempt.

The PSLV took off at the scheduled time of 5:59 AM, but the mission objectives were not achieved. Narayanan stated, 'Today, we aimed for the 101st launch under the EOS-09 mission from Sriharikota.'

The PSLV is a four-stage vehicle, and its performance was normal up to the second stage. The third stage motor ignited correctly, but the mission could not be completed during this phase. The third stage utilizes a solid motor system.

Narayanan further explained, 'There was a drop in chamber pressure in the motor case, which led to the mission's failure. We are currently reviewing the entire performance and will provide more information soon.'

The PSLV was set to carry the Earth Observation Satellite (EOS-09) as part of its 63rd mission. EOS-09 is similar to the EOS-04 satellite launched in 2022.

Equipped with a 'C-band synthetic aperture radar', EOS-09 can capture high-resolution images of the Earth's surface at any time, regardless of weather conditions. This satellite is crucial for agricultural and forestry monitoring, disaster management, urban planning, and national security.

According to scientists, sufficient fuel was reserved to deorbit the satellite after its effective mission duration, ensuring a debris-free mission within two years.