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India successfully launches RISAT-1

By The Assam Tribune

SRIHARIKOTA (AP), April 26 � Achieving yet another milestone in its space programme, India today successfully launched its first indigenous all-weather radar imaging satellite RISAT-1 that will boost its remote sensing capabilities and facilitate agriculture and disaster management, reports PTI.

The perfect launch of the satellite catapulted India into a select band of countries having indigenous radar imaging technology.

�Only the US, Canada, Japan and the European consortium have the technology so far,� PS Veeraraghavan, Director, Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Thiruvananthapuram, said.

Hailing the launch, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said it was an important milestone in India�s space programme and congratulated the ISRO scientists for displaying mastery of the complex launch vehicle technology.

In a textbook launch, the 1,858-kg spacecraft, the country�s first microwave remote sensing satellite, was injected into precise orbit by Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle PSLV C-19 about 19 minutes after a perfect lift off at 5.47 am at the end of the 71-hour countdown from Satish Dhawan Space Centre here, around 90 km from Chennai.

PSLV, the workhorse launch vehicle of Indian Space Research Organisation, achieved its 20th consecutive successful flight.

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