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On Thursday, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) launched their most powerful communications satellite to date into orbit, the GSAT-6A. But it appears that things haven’t gone their way. Yesterday, the organization provided confirmation that it has lost contact with the satellite, possibly due to a failure in the power system, according to Times of India. (Via Reuters)
The launch of GSLV-F08 rocket went smoothly and the satellite was launched successfully by completing an orbital maneuver following its deployment into geosynchronous transfer orbit. After that, it was supposed to execute another operation to raise its orbit a day later. Four minutes after the maneuver occurred, officials apparently lost contact with the satellite.
While the GSAT-6A launch was a big boost India’s space program, this certainly is a setback for them. It doesn’t help the fact that this is the second satellite that the agency has lost in the last six months. ISRO Chairman K. Sivan told The Hindu that, according to the data the organization has right now, “we expect that we will be able to recover the satellite.”
