In only their second launch of 2022, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) launched the PSLV C53 mission into equatorial orbit from the Satish Dhawan Launch Center’s Second Launch Pad in Sriharikota, India. The launch occurred at 00:32 UTC on June 30. PSLV C53 used the lightest version of the PSLV, the Core Alone. Larger versions of the PSLV use two, four, or six boosters of two different lengths.

This mission was contracted by New Space India Limited, a company started by the Indian government to encourage the country’s private space industry. Onboard the rocket were three payloads for different government agencies and universities in Singapore. One, DS-EO, is an optical imaging satellite that will be used by the Singaporean government for humanitarian and disaster relief. Neu-SAR is a commercial synthetic aperture radar satellite, the first one from Singapore. The last separable payload on PSLV C53 is a 2.6-kilogram CubeSat from the NTU School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering.

In addition to the three free-flying normal satellites, the rocket also flew six payloads integrated on its fourth stage, which will act as a satellite bus, providing power, communications, and propulsion. Compared to the regular upper stage it has solar panels and an extra battery, sun sensors, gyros, and other components. Compared to other times it has flown, the one on C53 is three-axis stabilized during this portion of the mission for the first time. Two of the six payloads on the PSLV Orbital Experimental Module are from Indian startups.

More Information

ISRO press release