Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

India Launches Five Foreign Satellites

Posted by Soulskill on from the high-five dept.

vasanth writes: "India has put into orbit five foreign satellites, including one built by France two from Canada and one each from Singapore and Germany. The PSLV (Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle) has so far successfully launched 67 satellites, including 40 foreign ones, into space. The PSLV costs about 17 million USD and the cost is seen as a major advantage India has over other countries in terms of commercial launches. When talking about the cost of the project, the Prime Minister of India noted that the launch was cheaper than Hollywood film Gravity.

3 of 85 comments (clear)

  1. Manned mission please... by monzie · · Score: 4, Insightful

    ISRO ( Indian Space Research Organization ) launch vehicles have attained the goals set for them. A politician recently pointed out that cost of sending 5 satellites to space was less than the budget of the movie Gravity ( I liked that movie, he should have picked Avatar for the example IMO ). The Mangalyaan ( Mars Mission ) costs less than â12 per km travelled, making it the most cost effective mars mission ever. These launches were done by the PSLV ( Polar satellite launch vehicle ) and cannot be used for manned launches. ISRO has suffered setbacks , notably with GSLV ( Geostationary satellite launch vehicle ) and in mastering the cryogenic engine. They have made progress and their track record makes them a very good contender to provide a good alternative to SpaceX.

  2. Great for India by AHuxley · · Score: 5, Interesting

    They studied hard and ensured they fully understood every aspect of basic satellite lunch systems domestically before moving to the next stage.
    Other nations used military funding, the private sector, other governments and imports to try and boost their own domestic projects.
    So many failed as the cash needed never could make up for what India fully understood from the 1960's: its about not getting ahead of your own domestic science.
    Now India can enjoy lower cost launch systems without needing any other nations help, costly imports or permission.
    "Indian Space Research Organisation"
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...

    --
    Domestic spying is now "Benign Information Gathering"
    1. Re:Great for India by ThatsMyNick · · Score: 5, Insightful

      they still can't clean up their garbage, their sewage, or feed, house, and clothe 90% of their population. They can't even keep the power grid they do have up and running reliably.

      You know what can fund them? Launching satellites for other countries, commercially, can. :)