Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will launch a students’ satellite Kalamsat and an imaging satellite Microsat-R from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota today. The national space agency’s workhorse rocket, PSLV C44, carrying the satellites, is scheduled for liftoff at 11:27 pm. The countdown for the launch began at 7:37 last evening and is progressing smoothly.

Kalamsat is a payload developed by students and Chennai based Space Kidz India for the first time. Talking to AIR News, Mission Director of Kalamsat, Dr Srimathy Kesan said: ISRO Chairman Dr K Sivan said, the Microsat-R satellite is meant for the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) purposes.

“ISRO will be using the aluminium tank for the first time in the fourth stage of the launch of PSLV C 44. This is to reduce the weight and increase the mass in the four-stage engine expendable rocket with alternating solid and liquid fuel.

About 14 minutes into the flight the rocket would eject Microsat R at an altitude of about 277 km. This would begin to function at an altitude of 450 km in an hour and 40 minutes. The Kalam sat is a 10 cm cube nanosatellite weighing about 1.2 kg and has a life span of about two months.