ISRO announced on Friday that Geo Imaging Satellite-1 (GISAT-1) will be India's first agile earth observation satellite operating from geostationary orbit.
“GISAT-1 would facilitate near real-time observation of the Indian sub-continent under cloud-free condition at frequent intervals", ISRO said while releasing the picture of the satellite.
Weighing about 2,268 kg, GISAT-1 will be placed in a geosynchronous transfer orbit via a GSLV-F10 rocket. It will then reach the final geostationary orbit using its onboard propulsion system.
A four-metre ogive-shaped payload fairing is being flown for the first time in this GSLV flight, SRO added. Known as a heat shield, payload fairing is used to protect the satellite from aerodynamic forces and the external atmosphere encountered during flight.
Geo Imaging Satellite-1 (GISAT-1) will be India's first agile Earth observation satellite operating from Geostationary orbit. Launch at 1743 Hrs IST on March 5th by GSLV-F10.
— ISRO (@isro) February 28, 2020
This picture shows GISAT-1 between two halves of GSLV-F10's payload fairing#GSLV #GSLVF10 #GISAT1 pic.twitter.com/o2TgmC9l0E
ISRO revealed the picture of GISAT-1, which is protected between two halves of payload fairing. However, the fairing structure gets jettisoned from the vehicle through the joints without affecting the trajectory of the vehicle once it reaches the desired altitude.
Operating from geostationary orbit, GISAT-1 will facilitate near real-time observation of the Indian sub-continent, under cloud-free conditions, at frequent intervals. ISRO claimed that the satellite is configured around a modified I-2K bus carrying multispectral and hyperspectral payloads in different bands with improved spatial and temporal resolution.
