ISRO & OneWeb To Launch 36 Satellites To Provide Global Coverage

ISRO and Bharti-backed OneWeb are ready to launch 36 satellites at Sriharikota. The goal is to provide global coverage of satellite networks by 2023.

Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite communications firm OneWeb, funded by Bharti Enterprises, announced that it will launch 36 satellites from the Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota. 

The 36 satellites will be launched through the ISRO’s heaviest rocket. ISRO will use its heaviest rocket GSLV-MkIII to place the OneWeb satellites into orbit.

This flight will put 70% of the company’s Gen 1 LEO constellation, which seeks to offer high-speed, low-latency broadband services, in orbit.

OneWeb will connect the “hardest-to-reach areas, therefore playing a crucial role in bridging the digital divide across India,” according to a statement from the business.

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A letter of intent was issued to OneWeb by the Department of Telecommunications in April 2022, based on a report, for the provision of broadband-from-space operations in the nation.

OneWeb has already postponed its launches from Russia’s Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan owing to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict, according to Reuters.

OneWeb collaborated with NewSpace India Ltd (NSIL), the commercial arm of the ISRO (Indian Space Research Organization), to make this launch achievable.

The satellites will be launched by ISRO’s largest rocket, the GSLV-MkIII, for the company’s fourteenth time.

According to a press release from the firm, one more launch will occur this year, and 3 more are planned for the beginning of next year to finish the constellation.

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A distribution collaboration with Hughes Communications India Private Ltd. was announced earlier this year by Bharti Enterprises, a significant investor and stakeholder in OneWeb, a company with its headquarters in London.

NewSpace India Limited’s Chairman-cum-Managing Director, Radhakrishnan D, stated

“The launch of 36 OneWeb satellites from India atop GSLV-MkIII is a historic achievement for NSIL and Isro. We look forward to the satellites and ground support equipment arriving in India in time for the launch.”

He also added, “We are excited to see the arrival of the satellites and ground support equipment in India in preparation for the launch.

Teams at NSIL/ISRO are working towards providing the best launch service solutions and support for OneWeb satellites.”

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