May 16, 2025
PSLV-C61/EOS-09 Mission
Why in news ? The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is set for the 101st launch with the PSLV-C61/EOS-09 mission on 18th May 2025, aiming to enhance India’s all-weather surveillance capabilities.
Relevance : UPSC Pre & Mains
Prelims : About the mission/ other related satellites
Mains : GS 3- Science & Tech.
About PSLV-C61 / EOS-09 Mission:
Launch: Scheduled for May 18, 2025, at 5:59 a.m. IST from Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota.
Satellite: EOS-09 (RISAT-1B), a 1,710 kg radar imaging satellite.
Orbit: Sun-synchronous, 610 km altitude, 97.844° inclination.
Purpose: Enables all-weather, day-and-night imaging for surveillance, border monitoring, disaster management, agriculture, forestry, and urban planning.
Technology: Features C-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) for high-resolution imagery (1-meter) through clouds, rain, and darkness.
Context: Accelerated deployment to enhance national security following the Pahalgam terror attack, building on RISAT-1A (launched 2022).
Mission Life: Operational until December 2029.
Status: PSLV-C61 moved to Mobile Service Tower for integration on May 15, 2025.
Chandrayaan-5 / LUPEX Mission
Collaboration: Involves ISRO, JAXA, ESA, and NASA.
Objective: Investigate lunar volatiles, including water, in permanently shadowed regions of the lunar south pole.
Launch: Planned for 2028 via JAXA’s H3-24L rocket.
Components: ISRO provides the lander and scientific instruments; JAXA supplies the 350 kg rover and launch vehicle; Mitsubishi Heavy Industries builds the rover.
Instruments: Includes ISRO’s Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR), Mid-Infrared Spectrometer (MIR), and Permittivity and Thermo-physical Investigation (PRATHIMA); NASA’s Neutron Spectrometer (NS); ESA’s Exospheric Mass Spectrometer (EMS-L).
Significance: Advances sustainable lunar exploration, supports potential lunar bases, and develops technologies for future crewed missions.
Progress: Third Technical Interface Meeting held in Bengaluru on May 13–14, 2025; mission approved by the Government of India on March 10, 2025.
| About the Earth Observation Satellites:
· Spacecraft designed to monitor Earth’s surface, atmosphere, and oceans for surveillance, environmental monitoring, disaster management, and resource management, using sensors for imaging and data collection across various wavelengths. · Purpose: Deliver real-time, high-resolution data for national security (border surveillance), agriculture (crop monitoring), forestry (deforestation tracking), disaster response (flood mapping), urban planning, and climate studies. · EOS-09 Details: |
C-band SAR: Provides all-weather, 24/7 imaging with 1-meter resolution for detailed and wide-area monitoring.
Applications: Enhances border security along India-Pakistan and India-China borders, aids disaster management, and supports strategic needs post-Operation Sindoor.
Orbit: Sun-synchronous with a 12-day repeat cycle for consistent imaging.
October 6, 2025
September 24, 2025
September 23, 2025
September 22, 2025
