ISRO's first mission in 2019 to put military satellite Microsat-R and student payload Kalamsat in space

Chennai: The first mission of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in 2019 will put Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO's) Microsat-R satellite and the first student-made payload Kalamsat into the outerspace on Thursday. 

The satellites will be carried onboard Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) C-44 from the spaceport of Sriharikota at 11:37 pm IST. This will be the 46th flight of ISRO's workhorse PSLV. The 16-hour countdown began Wednesday, informed ISRO in a tweet. 

"The countdown for the launch of PSLV-C44 mission started today at 19:37 hrs (IST) from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota. The launch is scheduled at 23:37 Hrs IST on 24th January 2019," a mission update by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said.

#ISROMissions 

Countdown for the launch of #PSLVC44 started today at 19:37 (IST) at Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota. The launch is scheduled tomorrow at 23:37 (IST).
Updates will continue.#Kalamsat#MicrosatR — ISRO (@isro) January 23, 2019

PSLV-C44 is the first mission of PSLV-DL, a new variant of the 44.4 metre tall rocket equipped with two strap-on configuration, ISRO said.

"In this mission, the fourth stage (PS4) of PSLV-C44 will be moved to higher circular orbit so as to establish an orbital platform for carrying out experiments," the ISRO said.