Successful Start To 2024: ISRO Launches Its First Satellite Of The Year – XpoSat To Study Black Hole

The ISRO successfully launched its first X-Ray Polarimeter Satellite, or XPoSat, on Monday, the first day of 2024. This satellite will provide several insights into astronomical objects including black holes. In the C58 mission, the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) of ISRO, which is known for its dependability, successfully launched the primary XPoSat into a 650 km Low Earth Orbit as planned. The launch took place at the scheduled time of 9.10 am from the first launch pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.

What is the purpose new satellite from ISRO – XPoSat?

The 44.4-meter-tall rocket, which had descended in great numbers at this spaceport located approximately 135 km east of Chennai, blasted off gracefully with deafening acclaim from onlookers as the 25-hour countdown came to a conclusion.

The goal of the X-ray Polarimeter Satellite, or XPoSat, according to the ISRO, is to look at the polarization of strong X-ray sources in orbit.

It is the space agency’s first specifically designed scientific satellite to conduct studies on space-based polarization measurements of X-ray emission from celestial sources.

When analyzing the radiation process and geometry of astronomical sources, X-ray polarization is an essential diagnostic tool.

The primary payload of XPoSat is POLIX (Polarimeter Instrument in X- Rays) which is designed to measure polarimetry parameters by Raman Research Institute and XSPECT (X-ray Spectroscopy and Timing) built by the UR Rao Satellite Centre, Bengaluru. The Mission life is about five years.

The aim of the POLIX payload is to measure the polarization of X-rays in the 8-30keV energy band that are emitted by around 50 possible cosmic sources using Thomson Scattering.

It will use the XSPECT payload to conduct long-term spectral and temporal studies of cosmic X-ray sources in the energy range of 0.8–15 keV.

It will use the POLIX and XSPECT payloads, respectively, to perform spectroscopic and polarization observations of X-ray emissions from cosmic sources in the common energy band.

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ISRO Chief wishes India on New Year’s

Emerging from the Mission Control Centre, ISRO chief S Somanath said, “Happy New Year to all of you. So on 1 January 2024, yet another successful mission of PSLV has been accomplished. PSLV-C58 has placed the primary satellite XPoSat in the desired orbit.”

“From this point, the orbit of PSLV 4th stage will be reduced to a lower orbit where the upper stage of PSLV which is described as POEM will carry out experiments with the onboard payloads and that will take some time,” he added.

“Let me also announce the orbit that has been accomplished which is available through various routes, it shows excellent orbit and the deviations from the targeted orbit is hardly just 3km in circular orbit of 650 km and inclination is 001 degree which is one of the very excellent orbital condition and yet another announcement is that the solar panel of the satellite has been deployed successfully,” Somanath said.