PSLV to Launch French Remote Sensing Satellite - SPOT - 6

A commercial Launch Services Agreement between Antrix Corporation Limited (ANTRIX), the commercial arm of ISRO; and ASTRIUM SAS, a Company under EADS, France; has been signed at recently. Under this agreement, an advanced Remote Sensing satellite - SPOT -6, weighing nearly 800 kg, built by ASTRIUM SAS, will be launched on-board ISRO's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), during the second half of 2012. Along with SPOT - 6 satellite, the PSLV, in its core alone configuration, will carry other co-passenger payloads.

This Launch Services Agreement signed between ANTRIX and ASTRIUM may be a part of the Long Term Agreement signed between the two agencies in September 2008.

It may be recalled that in November 2010, under a commercial contract between ANTRIX and ASTRIUM, an advanced communication satellite HYLAS was successfully build by ISRO and ASTRIUM together for a EUROPEAN customer. In the coming days, further collaboration possibilities between ANTRIX/ISRO and ASTRIUM would be explored.

INSAT-2E Completes 13 years of Successful Operation

After 13 years of satisfactory service, INSAT-2E, the last of the five satellites in the INSAT-2 series, has successfully finished its mission life. INSAT-2E was built with a planned mission life of 12 years and continued to function beyond its mission life. Launched on April 3, 1999 by the European Ariane-5 launcher, INSAT-2E was located at 830 East longitudes in the geostationary orbit.

INSAT-2E carried 14 C-band and 5 lower extended C-band transponders for different communication services. The satellite also carried a Very High Resolution Radiometer and a Charge Coupled Device camera for meteorological observation.

It might be recalled that 11 communication transponders of 36 MHz bandwidth onboard INSAT-2E satellite were leased to International Telecommunication Satellite Organisation (INTELSAT), the first such lease from an Indian satellite. INSAT-2E was controlled from Master Control Facility at Hassan.

Shri A S Kiran Kumar takes over as Director of Space Applications Centre

Shri A S Kiran Kumar, Distinguished Scientist and Associate Director, Space Applications Centre (SAC), Ahmadabad, has assumed the office of Director, Space Applications Centre. He took over the charge from Dr R Navalgund, the outgoing Director.

Shri Kiran Kumar joined SAC/ISRO in 1975. He has made immense contribution to the design and development of Electro-Optical Imaging Sensors for Airborne, Low Earth Orbit and Geostationary orbit satellites starting from Bhaskara TV consignment to the latest Terrain Mapping Camera and Hyper spectral Imager payloads for Chandrayaan-1 mission. He has made very significant contributions to the task of evolving the observation strategy surrounding land, ocean, atmospheric and planetary studies.

As Associate Director of Space Applications Centre, Shri Kiran Kumar has steered the design and realization of communication, navigation, microwave and remote sensing payloads.
Shri Kiran Kumar obtained B.Sc (Honours) degree in Physics and M.Sc degree in Electronics from Bangalore University as well as M.Tech degree in Physical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore.

Shri Kiran Kumar is the recipient of many success and awards like Indian Society of Remote Sensing Award for the year 1994, VASVIK award (Electronic Sciences and Technology) for the year 1998, Astronautical Society of India Award (Space Sciences and Applications) for the year 2001, ISRO Individual Service Award 2006, Bhaskara Award conferred by the Indian Society of Remote Sensing for the year 2007, success for Team Achievement Award 2008 of the International Academy of Astronautics and ISRO Performance excellence Award 2008.

He is a man of the National Academy of Engineers and Corresponding Member of the International Academy of Astronautics. Shri Kiran Kumar has represented ISRO in international forums like World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) and Committee on Earth Observation Satellites (CEOS) and is currently the Chairman of CEOS.