ISRO Launches Another Mission, Sends 36 Satellites Into Low-Earth Orbits

New Delhi: The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on Sunday (March 26, 2023) successfully launched the LVM3-M3/OneWeb India-2 mission from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Andhra Pradesh's Sriharikota. The LVM3 placed 36 OneWeb Gen-1 satellites totaling about 5,805 kg into a 450 km circular orbit with an inclination of 87.4 degrees.

The vehicle took off at 09:00:20 hours IST from the second launch pad at SDSC-SHAR, Sriharikota.

"It achieved satellite injection conditions in about 17 minutes and began injecting the satellites from the twentieth minute. The vehicle performed a sophisticated manoeuvre to orient in orthogonal directions and injected the satellites into precise orbits with defined time gaps to avoid collision of the satellites," the Indian space agency said in a statement.

This was the second mission for Network Access Associates Limited, United Kingdom (OneWeb Group Company) under a commercial agreement with NewSpace India Limited (NSIL) to launch 72 satellites to Low-Earth Orbits.

The first set of 36 satellites was launched in LVM3-M2/OneWeb India-1 mission on October 23, 2022.

This partnership between ISRO and NSIL will help OneWeb to provide connectivity across the length and breadth of India this year.

"From Ladakh to Kanyakumari and Gujarat to Arunachal Pradesh, OneWeb will bring secured solutions not only to enterprises but also to towns, villages, municipalities and schools, including the hardest-to-reach areas across the country," an official statement had said last year.

Press release pic.twitter.com/fkeAfzZpB9 — ISRO (@isro) March 26, 2023

OneWeb's commitment to enhance connectivity in India is backed by Bharti Global, its largest investor.

This was the sixth flight of LVM3, which was earlier known as Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle MkIII (GSLVMkIII). The LVM3 had five consecutive successful missions, including the Chandrayaan-2 mission.

Glimpses!
More in our other media. pic.twitter.com/saInoOQpt6 — ISRO (@isro) March 26, 2023

It is notable that the total number of foreign satellites launched by India has now gone up to 422 starting from 1999.