Manoj Ambat's Blog dealing with Defence, Foreign Affairs, Strategic Affairs and Politics

A desi Global Positioning System (GPS) service is on the anvil and will be available from the middle of next year, according to a top scientist of the Indian space agency. “We will be able to offer our own indigenous GPS service with the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS), being developed by Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO),” said Dr K Sivan, Director of ISRO’s Thiruvananthapuram-based Liquid Propulsion Systems Center. He disclosed this to the media on the sidelines of the 23rs convocation of the Thanthai Periyar Government institute of Technology here on Saturday. At present, India is making use of satellite services of other countries for the navigation applications using GPS. The IRNSS, developed by ISRO, would soon offer position information to users in India with accuracy for various applications such as mobile phones, terrestrial, aerial and marine navigation, disaster management etc . Out of the seven satellites planned, two have been already launche

Indian GSLV Launcher ( Image credits-Wikimedia Commons /ISRO/Author) India has been working in cooperation with 33 countries in the area of peaceful use of outer space, the government today said. India is pursuing cooperation with other countries on peaceful uses of outer space. Currently, cooperative arrangements are signed with 33 countries including Russia, United Kingdom, United States of America, Egypt, France, Germany, Hungary, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Mauritius, Mongolia, Myanmar, Republic of Korea and Saudi Arabia, said Jitendra Singh, Minister of State for Department of Space in a written response in Lok Sabha. The countries also include Syria, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, Norway, Peru, The Netherlands, Ukraine, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile and Venezuela. He said that the areas of cooperation include Remote Sensing of Earth, Satellite Communication, Launch Services, Telemetry and Tracking Support, Space Explo

ISRO GSLV launcher ( Image credits- Wikimedia commons/ISRO) On June 30, India celebrated  another successful launch  of the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), the workhorse of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). This time, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi was in attendance. His  SHAR speech  emphasized the role of technology in aiding development and referenced the humble beginnings of the ISRO. Among the many points he made, two were geopolitically significant. First, he observed that the satellite being launched, SPOT 7, belonged to a developed nation: France. Second, he challenged the ISRO to develop a satellite that would serve the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation nations. Those thoughts  coincide  with two of the three major foreign policy issues that confront India, as noted by Shivsankar Menon: its relations with major powers and its need for a peaceful and prosperous neighborhood. Major Power Relations: France Cooperation with France

PSLV launch ISRO successfully launched it's work horse the venerable Polar Satellite Launch vehicle (PSLV). The PSLV C-23 launch successfully injected five foreign satellite into the orbit. This mission is crucial for ISRO as this launch was a commercial launch with only foreign payloads.    The 230-ton Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) lifted off at 9:52. The rocket's main luggage was the 714 kg French earth observation satellite SPOT-7. Piggybacking on the main luggage were the four small satellites viz: 14-kg AISAT of Germany; NLS7.1 (CAN-X4) and NLS7.2 (CAN-X5) from Canada each weighing 15 kg; and the 7-kg VELOX-1 of Singa pore. We would like to congratulate ISRO on this success and wishes them more success in coming years. May they reach greater heights and may they make India the predominant power in space and take India into the forefront of cutting edge space applications. Congratulations  once again to ISRO. 

Pic courtesy- ISRO BANGALORE: India and France are working on building the third Indo-French  satellite  designed for climate change studies, a senior French official said today................... http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2014-01-23/news/46514126_1_climate-change-india-and-france-india-francois-richier

http://defencenews.in/defence-news-internal.asp?get=new&id=2905

Pic courtesy- Wikimedia and ISRO Today India and ISRO stepped into the annals of great space faring nations, a select group of 5 nations which has the capability to successfully launch satellites into the Geo Stationary Orbit using indigenous launchers with the successful launch of GSLV-D5 ferrying GSAT-14 communication satellite. This is even more remarkable because this feet was achieved using the indigenous cryogenic engine. This monumental achievement puts India firmly in the trajectory of rapid development and expansion of our space program which has grown in proposition over the years from launching small sounding rockets from TERLS, Thumba to being able to launch heavy duty rockets. India now has a well developed space program that rivals the best in the world. Many people has been asking for years as to why does India need such a mammoth space program? The answer is not far to find. Over the years with the advancement of space sciences in India, ISRO has developed a h

http://defencenews.in/defence-news-internal.asp?get=new&id=2791

http://defencenews.in/defence-news-internal.asp?get=new&id=2796

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Isros-Mars-Orbiter-Mission-successfully-placed-in-Mars-transfer-trajectory/articleshow/26656881.cms

Congrats to Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) for launching the Mangalyan (Mars probe) successfully. Followed every movement of the launch and felt proud to be born to this great country. Very best to one and all who are involved in the project. Vande Mathram  —