Isro makes history, successfully launches 104 satellites on single rocket

It’s quite a day for the India today, as the country’s space agency caps an unprecedented milestone in its history. 

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) launched a record 104 satellites, from seven different countries, into orbit today. The agency was using its PSLV-C37 workhorse for the mission, which had a previous best of 20 simultaneous satellite launches. The countdown for the launch of PSLV-C37/Cartosat2 Series satellite mission began at 5:28 AM soon after the Mission Readiness Review committee and Launch Authorisation Board gave its approval for lift off. PSLV first launched the 714 kg CARTOSAT-2 Series satellite for earth observation and then injected 103 co-passenger satellites, together weighing about 664 kg at lift-off into polar Sun Synchronous Orbit, about 520 km from Earth.

You can relive the event, as we captured it live, right below.

9:40 It's a 28-minute-long launch. At about 18 minutes the satellites will begin ejecting one by one. 

9:47 Nano-satellite separations have begun.

9:48 As launch time hits 20 minutes, operator announces that for 6 minutes, base station will not receive updates. Satellite launches happening in pairs will be recorded on-board, then transmitted after to Sriharikota.

Cartosat-2, INS-1A/B have separated succesfully. Launch proceeding with textbook precision. Live updates here: https://t.co/qgO6c6UCkU #ISRO pic.twitter.com/9rJL0AsLTb — DNA (@dna) February 15, 2017

No signal from the vehicle for the next 6 mins while 40 pairs of satellites separate. Live updates here: https://t.co/qgO6c6UCkU #ISRO pic.twitter.com/UiYisd0ItO — DNA (@dna) February 15, 2017

9:59 There's now a confirmation, all 104 satellites have been successfully launched. The team at  Sriharikota is applauding and congratulating each other.

10:01 ISRO Chairman AS Kiran Kumar: "My hearty congratulations to the entire ISRO team for the wonderful job done."

Success! All 104 satellites injected into orbit -- a world record. ISRO makes history. Live updates here: https://t.co/qgO6c6UCkU #ISRO pic.twitter.com/AbpoImDc1d — DNA (@dna) February 15, 2017

10:04 Project Director B Jayakumar: "Doing something new in an innovative way is always a passion for ISRO team. "

10:06 "With this launch of 104 satellites into orbit we've created a new record. ISRO has launched 226 satellites, out of which 179 are from foreign nations."

10:07 "First obstacle our team had to overcome was finding real estate for the payload on board."

Congratulations to @isro for the successful launch of PSLV-C37 and CARTOSAT satellite together with 103 nano satellites! — Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) February 15, 2017

This remarkable feat by @isro is yet another proud moment for our space scientific community and the nation. India salutes our scientists. — Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) February 15, 2017

10:11 "We're proud of this achievement, and we're already gearing up for other launches later this year," says P Kunhikrishnan, Director of Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) at Sriharikota.

With this launch, PSLV racks up 38 successful consecutive launches, placing @Isro firmly among the space elite. https://t.co/qgO6c6UCkU pic.twitter.com/hBdScxeMj4 — DNA (@dna) February 15, 2017