The 30-hour countdown for the launch of the Indian Space Research Organisation's GSLV-F06, with the advanced communication satellite GSAT 5P onboard, began on Friday, setting in motion the process of take-off scheduled for December 25, from Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.
The officials said that the GSAT 5P launch will take place at 4:04pm on Christmas Day.
"The 30 hour countdown began on Friday at 11:04am, and the rocket will be launched at 4:04 pm on Saturday," said ISRO director S Satish. He also said that pre-launch checks are being carried out at the rocket port, and that things are proceeding at a smooth pace.
The rocket launch, originally scheduled for Monday, was
aborted by ISRO on Sunday when it detected a leak in one of the valves of the Russian-made cryogenic engine. Subsequently, ISRO, and the Russian scientists working with it, conducted tests to check the stability of the faulty valve. On Wednesday, the space agency had decided to go ahead with the launch as test results were satisfactory.
The 51-metre tall Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV), with the 2,310 kg GSAT-5P satellite onboard, will retire INSAT-2E (the satellite that was sent up in 1999), and is aimed at ensuring continuity of telecom, television and weather services.
The GSAT-5P has 36 transponders, including 24 C-band transponders and 12 extended C-band ones. The transponders will be useful in telecasting television programs, including those related to telemedicine and tele-education, and in boosting telephonic services.
The mission will last 1,140 seconds, at the end of which, the cryogenic stage will catapult GSAT-5P into orbit. The GSAT 5P is ISRO'S first GSLV launch after the
failed April 15 flight testing of the indigenous cryogenic engine in the GSLV-D3 mission.
Courtesy: INN