The launch of the GSLV-F12/NVS-01 mission scheduled for May 29 10:42 hours IST from the second launch pad at SDSC-SHAR, Sriharikota is expected to augment ISRO's navigation capabilities.
This Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) mission is designed to deploy the NVS-01 navigation satellite, weighing about 2,232 kg, into a Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit. Subsequent orbit-raising maneuvers will be used for taking the satellite to the intended orbit.
Interestingly, the NVS-01 is the first of the second-generation satellites envisaged for Navigation with Indian Constellation (NavIC) services. NVS series of satellites will sustain and augment the NavIC with enhanced features. This series incorporates L1 band signals additionally to widen the services. For the first time, an indigenous atomic clock will be flown in NVS-01.
In an interaction with THE WEEK, ISRO chairman S. Somanath had stated that ISRO's aim is to launch the next series of NavIC satellites, which are new generation navigation satellites with features like the L1 band (the civilian mobile band), this year.
The NVS-01 satellite is a navigation satellite and the first of the second-generation satellites of the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS). It provides position, velocity, and time information to users in India and its surrounding regions. “NVS-01 is the new designation for the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) satellite IRNSS-1J. The name was changed to NVS-01 in order to reflect the fact that the satellite is part of the second generation of IRNSS satellites. The second-generation satellites are being built with enhanced features and capabilities, and they will help to improve the accuracy and reliability of the NavIC navigation system,” remarked Girish Linganna, Aerospace and Defence Analyst and Director, ADD Engineering Components India Limited.
The satellite is set to replace the IRNSS-1G satellite launched in 2016, which is part of a constellation of seven satellites providing navigational services to the Indian region and is expected to have a mission life of 12 years. It is located above the Earth in geostationary orbit and covers India and a region up to 1,500 km beyond the nation's boundary.
“Weighing 2,232 kg, the NVS-01 satellite will be deployed into a Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO), which is a highly elliptical orbit with an apogee (farthest point from Earth) of approximately 36,000 kilometers. It will then use its own propulsion system to reach its final geostationary orbit. It will incorporate L1 band signals to widen the services it offers,” said Linganna.
Interestingly, for the first time, it will be equipped with its indigenous onboard atomic clock, which will allow for more accurate orbit-raising procedures, thanks to nanosecond-level precision time measurements. The United States (GPS), Russia (GLONASS), and China (BeiDou) are the only other countries that have their own navigation systems.