Indian heavy lift rocket LVM-3 successfully took the 36 satellites of UK-based Network Access Associates Ltd (OneWeb) to space on Sunday morning, March 26. The 43.5-metre tall LVM-3 rocket, which weighs 643 tonnes itself, carried 36 satellites weighing a total of 5.8 tonnes to outer space. The rocket took off from the second launch pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.
Just over 19 minutes into its flight, the LVM-3 began to sling the 36 small broadband communication satellites in low earth orbit (LEO). The satellites will be placed into a 450 km circular orbit with an inclination of 87.4 degrees. Once all the satellites are put into orbit, the total number of foreign satellites launched by India since 1999 will be 422. OneWeb, is a joint venture between India Bharti Global and the UK government.
The LVM3 (formerly GSLV-Mk III) is a three-stage rocket with the first stage fired with liquid fuel, the two strap-on motors powered by solid fuel, the second by liquid fuel and the third is the cryogenic engine. The ISRO's heavy lift rocket has a carrying capacity of 10 tonnes to the LEO and four tonnes to the Geo Transfer Orbit (GTO). The LVM-3 has had five consecutive successful missions, including the Chandrayaan-2 mission.
This is OneWeb's final instalment of 36 Gen1 satellites. Once all the 36 satellites are put into orbit, the UK company backed by India's Bharti Group and the UK government will have 618 satellites orbiting in space. OneWeb has 582 satellites now in orbit.
ISRO's commercial arm, NewSpace India Ltd (NSIL) has signed a contract with the UK company to launch 72 satellites in two phases for a launch fee of over Rs 1,000 crore, OneWeb Chairman Sunil Bharti Mittal had said last October. The first batch of 36 satellites was launched on October 23, 2022 from Sriharikota rocket port in Andhra Pradesh with the LVM3 rocket formerly known as Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle MkIII (GSLV MkIII).
OneWeb Gen-1 satellites belong to the 150 kg class. The constellation comprises 648 individual satellites. Out of that 588 Active Satellites equally divided among 12 planes operate at an altitude of about 1200 km above the Earth's surface, ISRO said. Each plane is separated in altitude by 4 km to prevent inter-plane collision.