ISRO to launch game-changer satellite 'GSLV-F10' on Aug 12; Check time, mission details

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) announced on Wednesday that the countdown for the launch of the GSLV-F10 EOS-03 mission has begun. The geosynchronous satellite launch vehicle (GSLV) will be launched at 5:43 am tomorrow, August 12. The launch will take place at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) at Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh. The launch depends a lot on the weather conditions and ISRO has already warned that there could be delays. This launch will come as a big landmark for celebrations just before Independence Day. Union minister of state (MoS) in charge of the department of space, Jitendra Singh, had confirmed earlier this week in the Lok Sabha that the Earth Observation Satellite-03 will be launched on August 12. 

What is the spacecraft tasked with and what is it supposed to do?

ISRO’s official handle tweeted, "Countdown for the launch of GSLV-F10/EOS-03 mission commenced today at 0343Hrs (IST) from Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR, Sriharikota." The post was of the GSLV-F10 mission and the rocket loaded at the Sriharikota spaceport. A few hours later, ISRO announced that they have completed the filling of the oxidiser for the second stage (GS2) of GSLV-F10 and the filling of propellant for the aforementioned second stage has begun. The GSLV-F10 mission has a geo-imaging satellite GISAT-1. As the rocket enters orbit around the Earth, it will act as India's "eye in the sky". It will be programmed to look over locations that the ISRO wants to study. The geosynchronous satellite will be placed in orbit to help India to prepare for natural disasters and other immediate events that require quick reactions.

An official release from ISRO said that the GISAT-1 satellite will receive spectral signatures for agriculture, forestry, mineralogy, cloud properties, snow and glaciers, and oceanography. The release further gave a detailed description of the mission.  Isro is sending an Ogive-shaped payload measuring a diameter of 4 metres this time. Isro said that EOS-03, the 2,268-kg state-of-the-art agile Earth observation satellite, will be placed by the launch vehicle in Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit. Subsequently, the satellite will reach the final geostationary orbit using its onboard propulsion system, officials said.

(With inputs from ISRO's official bulletin)