ISRO to launch record 22 satellites in single mission in June

Bengaluru: ISRO on Saturday said it will launch a record 22 satellites in a single mission next month.

"After the current reusable launch vehicle, the next experiment what we have to do we have to worry about that. Other than that, next month we have a launch where we will be launching about 22 satellites. Also one of a cartographic series satellite will be launched," ISRO Chairman Kiran Kumar said.

Speaking on the sidelines of an event organised by Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FKCCI), he said that of the 22 satellites, three are Indian and the rest all commercial.

"The launch is scheduled during the end of next month," he added.

Earlier, Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre Director K Sivan had said ISRO's workhorse Polar rocket PSLV C34 will be used for the launch, which will have satellites from US, Canada, Indonesia and Germany as co-passengers.

The space agency had earlier sent ten satellites into orbit in a single mission in 2008.

Kiran Kumar said that "immediately after that (launch), we have a scatterometer that is going to get launched, then INSAT 3DR we call- it is to provide vertical temperature and humidity profile from geostationary satellite.."

Taking a step in development of reusable rocket which will drastically cut down cost of access to space, ISRO had on Monday successfully flight-tested an indigenous winged Reusable Launch Vehicle, dubbed "swadeshi" space shuttle, from Sriharikota spaceport in Andhra Pradesh.

The first in the series of experimental flights for Reusable Launch Vehicle-technology development is the hypersonic flight experiment (HEX) followed by the landing experiment (LEX), return flight experiment (REX) and scramjet propulsion experiment (SPEX).