ISRO's EOS-09 Mission Fails in Third Stage

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)'s EOS-09 mission has failed in its third stage, ISRO chief Dr. V. Narayanan has announced.

ISRO Satellite Launch Failure: The Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) ambitious EOS-09 mission failed on Sunday due to a technical snag in the third stage of the launch. The mission, launched via the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C61) from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota at 5:59 AM, failed to place the satellite in its intended Sun Synchronous Polar Orbit (SSPO) due to a problem encountered in the third stage within minutes of launch.

Technical Snag in the Third Stage

ISRO chief Dr. V. Narayanan informed that while the first and second stages of the PSLV performed nominally, a technical anomaly occurred in the third stage, preventing mission completion. He stated, "We are analysing the problem and will revert soon." ISRO also confirmed on its official X (formerly Twitter) account that the mission did not reach its intended objective due to technical reasons.

EOS-09: A Surveillance Satellite

EOS-09 is a state-of-the-art Earth Observation Satellite utilising C-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) technology. This satellite is capable of capturing high-resolution images of the Earth's surface in all weather conditions, day and night. Its intended applications included agriculture, forest management, disaster monitoring, and defence.

PSLV-C61: The 101st Mission

PSLV-C61 marked ISRO's 101st launch attempt. This was the 63rd flight of the PSLV rocket overall and the 27th flight of its XL version. The rocket boasts a remarkable success rate, and ISRO's PSLV is considered one of the world's most reliable launch vehicles.

EOS-09 was designed as a long-duration mission. It included long-life fuel to allow for a controlled de-orbiting at the end of its mission, mitigating space debris.