ISRO officials said Tuesday they have completed all preparation for the launch of the INSAT-4C telecom satellite this month. The spacecraft will be carried in orbit aboard India's Geo-synchronous Satellite Vehicle-5 from the Satish Dhawan Space Center at Sriharikota. The current launch window runs between July 10 and 15.
"We have moved the vehicle to the launch pad. Except for weather conditions, we are on time for the launch on schedule," ISRO Chairman N. Madhavan Nair told reporters.
Nair had been speaking to Indian business representatives about his agency's plans to build an all-Indian satellite navigation system. He said the launch of the satellite from the homegrown rocket is expected to cut launch costs by more than 30 percent.
The satellite, which is the second in the Insat 4 series, is equipped with 12 KU band transponders and is designed for an operational lifetime of 10 years.
