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ToI feed, dated 18th July 2007.
Kashif
India to launch Israeli spy sat
PSLV Is Set To Fire 260-Kg TechSar From Sriharikota In September
Srinivas Laxman | TNN
Mumbai: India will launch a foreign satellite with a top secret payload in September. Although officials at the Indian Space Research Organisation are tight-lipped about the nature of the hush-hush mission, information obtained by TOI from other sources suggests that Isros proven four-stage Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) will carry an Israeli spy satellite called TechSar, weighing about 260 kg. The lift-off will be from the space centre at Sriharikota.
The launch will mark a crucial milestone in growing the Indo-Israeli military ties and theres a likelihood that some of the secret images taken by TechSar will be made available to India.
Developed by the Israeli aircraft industry, it will be Tel Avivs first satellite with what is known as a synthetic aperture radar (SAR). This will allow the satellite to see objects below which are extremely tiny. SAR is used by moving instruments like satellites over immobile targets and has wide applications in the critical area of remote sensing.
While Isro officials confirmed the flight to TOI, they, however, maintained it was absolutely classified at this stage. All they would say was that it would be a dedicated commercial launch for a foreign customer.
SECRET EYE IN THE SKY
The satellite, developed by the Israeli aircraft industry, is fitted with a synthetic aperture radar
This will enable the satellite to see extremely tiny objects
Some of the secret images taken by the satellite are likely to be shared with India
Satellite launch likely to cost around $15 million
Mumbai: ISRO is tight-lipped over its move to launch a foreign satellite from Sriharikota, the launch is expected to cost around $15 million. In contrast, if Israel had used its own Shavit rocket for launching its satellite, the price would have gone up to about $20 million, according to space experts here.
Experts say that Israel opted for the Indian PSLV for two reasons:
It displays Israels confidence in the Indian rocket over its own Shavit rocket, which has run into several operational problems over the years. The Israel-made rocket failed in September 2004, destroying an Israeli defence ministry satellite called Ofeq-6 costing $100 million.
The Israeli defence ministry has laid down new orbital requirements for TechSar which Shavit could not provide. The new requirements are aimed at giving TechSar a wider coverage area.
This will be Indias second dedicated commercial launch this year; in April, it carried an Italian satellite called Agile. We do not wish to make any announcement about the forthcoming secret mission now because of the extremely sensitive nature of the payload, a senior Isro official told TOI. Another official, when contacted at Bangalore, said: Yes, as of now the flight is taking place, but I request you not to ask me anything about it at this point. I just cannot say anything. The launch date is yet to be fixed, he said.
Once in orbit, the India-launched Israeli satellite will be controlled by the Israeli defence ministry. If the mission succeeds, it will be the second spy satellite launched by India. The first one was Indias own Technology Experiment Satellite (TES), which was carried by the PSLV on October 22, 2001. It has been functioning without a hitch.
Prior to ferrying the Israeli spy satellite, India will launch the three-stage Geo Synchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) carrying the Insat-4CR communication satellite between August 25 and 30 this year.
Kashif
India to launch Israeli spy sat
PSLV Is Set To Fire 260-Kg TechSar From Sriharikota In September
Srinivas Laxman | TNN
Mumbai: India will launch a foreign satellite with a top secret payload in September. Although officials at the Indian Space Research Organisation are tight-lipped about the nature of the hush-hush mission, information obtained by TOI from other sources suggests that Isros proven four-stage Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) will carry an Israeli spy satellite called TechSar, weighing about 260 kg. The lift-off will be from the space centre at Sriharikota.
The launch will mark a crucial milestone in growing the Indo-Israeli military ties and theres a likelihood that some of the secret images taken by TechSar will be made available to India.
Developed by the Israeli aircraft industry, it will be Tel Avivs first satellite with what is known as a synthetic aperture radar (SAR). This will allow the satellite to see objects below which are extremely tiny. SAR is used by moving instruments like satellites over immobile targets and has wide applications in the critical area of remote sensing.
While Isro officials confirmed the flight to TOI, they, however, maintained it was absolutely classified at this stage. All they would say was that it would be a dedicated commercial launch for a foreign customer.
SECRET EYE IN THE SKY
The satellite, developed by the Israeli aircraft industry, is fitted with a synthetic aperture radar
This will enable the satellite to see extremely tiny objects
Some of the secret images taken by the satellite are likely to be shared with India
Satellite launch likely to cost around $15 million
Mumbai: ISRO is tight-lipped over its move to launch a foreign satellite from Sriharikota, the launch is expected to cost around $15 million. In contrast, if Israel had used its own Shavit rocket for launching its satellite, the price would have gone up to about $20 million, according to space experts here.
Experts say that Israel opted for the Indian PSLV for two reasons:
It displays Israels confidence in the Indian rocket over its own Shavit rocket, which has run into several operational problems over the years. The Israel-made rocket failed in September 2004, destroying an Israeli defence ministry satellite called Ofeq-6 costing $100 million.
The Israeli defence ministry has laid down new orbital requirements for TechSar which Shavit could not provide. The new requirements are aimed at giving TechSar a wider coverage area.
This will be Indias second dedicated commercial launch this year; in April, it carried an Italian satellite called Agile. We do not wish to make any announcement about the forthcoming secret mission now because of the extremely sensitive nature of the payload, a senior Isro official told TOI. Another official, when contacted at Bangalore, said: Yes, as of now the flight is taking place, but I request you not to ask me anything about it at this point. I just cannot say anything. The launch date is yet to be fixed, he said.
Once in orbit, the India-launched Israeli satellite will be controlled by the Israeli defence ministry. If the mission succeeds, it will be the second spy satellite launched by India. The first one was Indias own Technology Experiment Satellite (TES), which was carried by the PSLV on October 22, 2001. It has been functioning without a hitch.
Prior to ferrying the Israeli spy satellite, India will launch the three-stage Geo Synchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) carrying the Insat-4CR communication satellite between August 25 and 30 this year.
