ISRO’s last mission of 2024 is PSLV-C60/SPADEX by December end
Reportedly the indian space research organisation (ISRO) is preparing for the final mission of the year PSLV-C60/SPADEX, which will demonstrate in-space docking technology using two small spacecraft. The mission is scheduled for launch by the end of the month, though the exact time has yet to be announced. If india succeeds, it will become only the fourth country in the world to achieve this feat. In-space docking is a critical technology needed for multiple rocket launches aimed at achieving common mission objectives, including lunar sample collection and the establishment of the Bharatiya Antriksh Station (BAS).Earlier on Saturday, the space agency announced that it had successfully integrated the launch vehicle and moved it to the First Launch Pad for further integration of the satellites. The goal is to successfully perform the docking and undocking of two 220 kg spacecraft SDX02 (Chaser) and SDX02 (Target) in low Earth orbit in a cost-effective manner. Both satellites will be launched by PSLV-C60 independently and simultaneously into a 470 km circular orbit with a local time cycle of about 66 days.Moreover the SpaDeX mission has been indigenously designed and realized by the UR Rao Satellite Centre (URSC) with the support of other isro centres. ISTRAC will control the spacecraft during the orbital phase using isro ground stations and other externally contracted ground stations. Full integration and testing of the satellites were carried out at Ananth Technologies, Bengaluru.