The Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) lifted off smoothly from the first launch pad at the Satish
Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota on Sunday, but the mission did not reach its intended destination,
and the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) declared that the satellites are no longer usable.
The failure is being blamed on the Velocity Trimming Module (VTM), which inserts the satellites into
their desired orbits and did not fire in the terminal stage. The VTM was supposed to run for 30 seconds,
but it only ran for one.
While declaring that all stages performed well, the Indian space agency initially hinted at data loss and
did not immediately declare the mission a success.
“SSLV-D1 placed the satellites in an elliptical orbit 356 km x 76 km instead of a circular orbit 356 km.
Satellites are no longer functional. The problem has been correctly identified. Failure of logic to detect a
sensor failure and proceed with a salvage action,” Isro said in a statement.
Isro announced this morning that the “Maintenance flight of SSLV has been completed.” All stages went
off without a hitch. During the terminal stage, data loss is observed. It is being investigated. “Will be
updated shortly.”
An unstable orbit means that the satellite’s performance will suffer, and there is a chance that it will
collide with other satellites or, in the worst-case scenario, crash back to Earth.
This marks the loss of two large satellites, the Earth Observation Satellite (EOS-02) and the AzadiSAT, a
CubeSat built by 750 female students to commemorate India’s 75 th year of independence. According to
experts, the satellites most likely ended up over the Pacific between Australia and New Zealand.
Isro will form a committee to investigate the failure. “A committee would investigate and make
recommendations.” ISRO will return with SSLV-D2 soon after implementing the recommendations,” Isro
stated.
SSLV, Isro’s answer to the small satellite launch market, also appears doomed, as the inaugural flight did
not produce the desired results. The launch vehicle, which cost Rs 169 crore to develop, was expected to
be ready for flight in 72 hours and could carry satellites weighing up to 500 kgs into space.
This is Isro’s second loss in a year, despite the fact that it has a perfect track record of launching
satellites and missions into not only Low Earth Orbit (LEO), but also deep space. The erratic delivery
comes just months after the PSLV-C53 mission, which successfully launched the Earth Observation
Satellite.