GSat-14

Spacecraft nº:

Indian spacecraft nº: 73

Launch data: Designation  39498 / 14001A Launch date  05 Jan 2014 - 10:48 UT Launch site  Sriharikota, SLP Launch vehicle  GSLV Mk2 (#D5) Mission  Communication Geostationary orbit: Perigee / Apogee  35771 x 35816 km Eccentricity   Inclination  0.2 deg Period  1436.1 min

Spacecraft data: Prime manufacturer  ISRO Platform  I-2K (I-2000) Bus Operator  Insat Mass at launch  1982 kg Dry Mass   kg Basic shape   Dimension (m)  2.0 x 2.0 x 3.6 m Equipment  6 Ku-band, 6 ext. C-band transponders, Ka-band beacons Solar array  2 deployable solar arrays Antennae  One 2m and one 2.2 m single shell shaped reflector Antennae (transmit and receive) Stabilization   Propulsion  Bi propellant-Mono Methyl Hydrazine and Mixed Oxides of Nitrogen (MON-3) DC power  2600 W Design lifetime  12 yrs

GSAT-14 Photo Credit: ISRO

Description:

• GSAT-14 is the twenty third geostationary communication satellite of India built by ISRO, and is intended to serve as a replacement for GSAT 3 (EDUSAT).
• The spacecraft is configured with 6 Ku- and 6 Extended-C-band transponders providing India coverage beams. In addition, the spacecraft also carries Ka-band beacons transmitting the signals at 20 and 30 GHz, which are planned to be used to carry out studies related to rain and atmospheric effects on Ka-band satellite communication links in Indian region.
• Some of the new technologies that will be tested on GSAT-14 are: fiber optic gyro, active pixel sun sensor, round type bolometer, field programmable gate array based earth sensors and thermal control coating experiments.
  The spacecraft weighs around 2020 kg, generates 2.6 KW payload power and employs the standard I2K bus.
• The rocket will fly in the GSLV Mk.2 configuration with an Indian-built cryogenic upper stage and 3.4m fairing on August 19, 2013.
  It is being built using an existing structure and several mechanical and electrical components procured as spares during earlier projects.
• The satellite will be located at 74ºE longitude and will have a mission life of 11 years.
• GSAT-14 is an Indian communications satellite that will extend India′s Ku-band and C-band communications capacity with 12 transponders, along with a pair of Ka-band beacons for frequency attenuation studies. GSAT 14 will be positioned near other Indian satellites, such as INSAT 3C, INSAT 4CR and Kalpana 1. The spacecraft also carries several technological experiments, including a fiber optic gyroscope, an active pixel sun sensor and new types of thermal coatings.

Mission details:

• Launch delayed from October, December 2012, January, February, April and July 2013.
• India launched its Geostationary Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) on Jan 5, 2014 placing the GSAT-14 satellite in a 182 x 35755 km x 19.4 deg geostationary transfer orbit. By Jan 7 its onboard apogee engine had placed it in a 32543 x 35741 km x 0.7 deg subsynchronous orbit on the way to GEO and by Feb 4 it was on station at 73.9E. GSAT-14 carries C and Ku band comms payloads, and Ka-band beacons for a propagation study.

External links:

• ISRO: Satellite pdf brochure
• Satellite tracking (n2ya.com): Real time satellite tracking