ISRO’s GSLV-D6 mission. Photo: ISRO

[Via Satellite 08-27-2015] The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) completed the ninth flight of the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle on Aug. 27, carrying the GSAT 6 communications satellite. The mission, conducted from Satish Dhawan Space Center Shar (SDSC SHAR), Sriharikota, was the fifth developmental flight of GSLV and the third to carry the indigenous Cryogenic Upper Stage (CUS). ISRO used the GSLV-D6 mission to further test and qualify the upper stage.

GSAT 6, separated from the CUS roughly 17 minutes after launch, and automatically deployed its two solar arrays after injection to Geostationary Transfer Orbit (GTO). The 2,117 kg GSAT 6 carries five S-band spot beams and one national C-band beam for strategic users. It is the 25th ISRO-built geostationary communications satellite, and the 12th in GSAT series. GSAT 6 will enter service following its ascension to GEO at 83 degrees east, the unfurling of its 6-meter antenna, and in orbit testing of communications payloads.