ISRO's PSLV-C62 Mission Fails to Reach Orbit

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) suffered a loss when the PSLV-C62 mission was unable to insert the satellites into their orbits. The beginning of the year launch was aimed to be a successful one but the mission did not meet its purpose.

Rocket Launch and Mission Failure

The PSLV-C62 rocket took off from Sriharikota's Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SHAR) on Monday morning. The countdown had progressed down to 10:17 AM when the rocket was already launched from the first launch pad at 10:18:30 AM. The first two phases of the rocket went according to plan and were successful.

The incident took place during the third phase (PS3) just when the fourth phase (PS4) was about to start. A technical fault made the rocket divert from the intended route. Consequently, it lost control and could not place 16 satellites into the orbit designated for them.

Satellites Affected

One of the 16 satellites, ‘EOS-N1’ (Anvesha), which is crucial for the country’s defense, could not get into orbit. Besides, the mission consisted of the 15 small satellites from different countries, all of which were affected.

Official Statement from ISRO

The ISRO Chairman, V. Narayanan, acknowledged the mission failure. He mentioned, "Up to the end of the third stage, the rocket’s operation was normal. Then, a technical fault at that moment caused the launch vehicle to miss its intended orbit. We are investigating the precise causes of this failure and will issue comprehensive information shortly."