ISRO has great plans for 2012

Radar Image Satellite Microwave 1, (RI Sat 1), the first Indian satellite equipped with a radar system (microwave system), will be launched this year, announced K Radhakrishnan, chairman, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), on Wednesday.

At the national seminar on geospatial solutions for resource conservation and management, held at Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Radhakrishnan spoke about the ISRO’s projects that would be launched in the calendar year. The radar/microwave system, slated to be launched around March 15, will enable the country to create images during different weather conditions and also will map the terrain of India as opposed to earlier remote-sensing missions, which relied primarily on optical instruments.

Apart from RI Sat 1, Radhakrishnan said the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSVL) Mk-III flight will reach the cryogenic state around June, 2012.

“First and foremost (priority) is the GSLV. We are preparing the cryogenic stage and going through advanced stages of ground testing. Once we are through with that, the stages will be ready by June and we should be able to have the first flight,” he said of GSLV, which has failed two times in the past.

Dr K Kasturirangan, member, planning commission of India and former chairman of ISRO, who also spoke at the seminar, suggested that there should be a Geographic Information System (GIS) at the national level.

“There should be a standardised GIS system at the national level, which will provide information on geography, socio-economic conditions and more and should be widely accessible to various users at different levels,” he said.