New Delhi : The Indian Space Research Organisation or the ISRO has been unusually quiet about the health of the GSAT 6 A satellite. No update has been released by the ISRO on GSAT 6 A in the last 48 hours. The last update came at 9.22 am on March 30, when the first orbit raising was carried. Though some sources say the second orbit raising on Saturday went off normally and the setback came immediately after that.
Sources in ISRO say the satellite suffered a serious setback and scientists and engineers at are working round the clock to correct the anomaly. There is an issue with the power systems of the satellite, say sources.
Top officials at ISRO have not confirmed what has gone wrong with the satellite and whether can it be retrieved at all.
The GSAT 6 A is communications satellite that is earmarked largely for defence purposes and is mostly used by the armed forces. The satellite has cost ISRO about Rs 270 crore. The satellite uses a very special umbrella-like antenna that is 6 metres in diameter and gives out signals powerful enough to be picked up by handled devices. This was to provide point to point communication.
GSAT 6 A was successfully launched using the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mk II on March 29, 2018 from Sriharikota. The satellite has a twin already operational in space.
The last time ISRO faced a failure was on August 31, 2017, when the PSLV failed to launch the IRNSS 1 H satellite.
Source: NDTV
