Several firsts in ISRO’s Jan 1, 2024 space mission

The Monday rocketing of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has several firsts like taking into space a satellite built by women, testing of fuel cell and others, apart from being the first time a space mission is carried out on the first day of the calendar year.

ISRO with its Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle-C58 (PSLV-C58) successfully orbited its X-ray Polarimeter Satellite (XPoSat) at 650 km altitude.

The rocket’s fourth stage has been converted into an orbital platform with 10 experimental payloads from educational institutions, private companies and ISRO.

One of the payloads is the Women Engineered Satellite (WESAT) built by LBS Institute of Technology for Women for comparison of solar irradiance and UV index.

On its part, ISRO will test its fuel cell, silicon based high energy cells and carry out Interplanetary dust count measurement.

According to S.Somanath, Chairman, ISRO, the space agency will test its fuel cell which will be the precursor for powering the Indian space station whenever it is built.

The other payloads are from TakeMe2Space, K. J. Somaiya Institute of Technology, Inspecity Space Labs Private Ltd, Dhruva Space Private Ltd and Bellatrix Aerospace Private Ltd (two payloads).

For the first time in its history, ISRO carried out a space mission on the first day of a calendar year.

Earlier, ISRO carried out space missions with its two rockets – PSLV and Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) in the month of January a couple of times, but not on the first day of a calendar year.