1

DAILY
CLASS NOTES
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Lecture – 28
Space Technology-Remote
sensing and communication
Satellites
 2

Space Technology-Remote sensing and communication Satellites

Indian Remote Sensing Satellites:

❖ In 1988, the first remote sensing satellite IRS-1A was launched.

❖ At present there are more than 20 remote sensing satellites established by India.
❖ India is among one of the most developed countries having civilian remote sensing satellites.
❖ Example: Cartosat, Resource Sat, Ocean Sat, SCATSAT, HySIS, RISAT, EOS, Megha Tropiques, SARAL.
Let us discuss them one by one:
❖ Cartosat: It is a dedicated mapping and infrastructural development in the country. Example: Development
of roads, townships, canals etc.
❖ Resourcesat: It is used for the management of natural resources such as agriculture and forest. It is helpful in
crop evaluation programmes and annual forest censuses.
❖ Oceansat and Scatsat: It is used for management, surveillance, mapping and early warning in coastal and
oceanic areas.
❖ HySIS (Hyper-Spectral Imaging Satellite): It can recognize and analyze a specific place or object by
differentiating it from its surroundings. It is useful in agriculture, mineral exploration and defense application.
❖ RISAT (Radar Imaging Satellite): It is used in Kharif crop evaluation, flood evaluation and disaster
management. It can also be useful in border surveillance.
❖ EOS (Earth Observation Satellite): There is EOS 01, EOS 03, EOS 04.
❖ Megha Tropiques: It is a joint mission developed by ISRO and the French space agency, CNES, for tropical
weather and climate studies.
❖ SARAL: It is used for the study of the ocean surface.
Communication Satellite of India:
❖ India’s first communication satellite INSAT-1B was launched in 1983.
❖ At present there are more than 20 communication satellites placed in orbit and India is one of the most
developed countries in the Asia-Pacific region.
 3

❖ Communication satellites are placed in Geo-Stationary orbit and it has different types of transponders as
communication payload.
Types of Transponders:
❖ S-band: It operates in
the frequency between
2 GHz – 4 GHz.
❖ C band: It operates in
the frequency between
4 GHz – 8 GHz.
❖ Ku band: It operates in
the frequency between
12 GHz – 18 GHz.
❖ Ka band: It operates in
a frequency between
26.5 GHz – 40 GHz.

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has allocated 1 GHz – 50 GHz microwave frequency for
communication satellites and this is known as Satellite Command Frequency. Ku band is the most popular
frequency band because it requires a small-sized antenna and it is useful in DTH and V-SAT (Very Small
Aperture Terminal) services.
International Telecommunication Union
❖ It is a specialized agency of the United Nations.
❖ It is responsible for many matters related to Information and Communication Technologies.
❖ It was established on 17 May 1865 as the International Telegraph Union, significantly predating the
UN and making it the oldest UN agency.
❖ The Headquarters is in Geneva, Switzerland.

Recent Communication Satellites of India:

❖ GSAT-30: It was launched in January 2020 by Ariane-5 (France). It is a 3 Ton heavy satellite with 24
transponders.
❖ CMS-01: It was launched in December 2020 by PSLV-XL. INSAT was the oldest name of a communications
satellite by ISRO. Later it was renamed to GSAT. CMS is the new name of a communication satellite.
 4

Important Communication Satellites of India:

❖ GSAT-09: It was launched in 2017. It is a South Asian satellite launched for SAARC countries. It was a part
of Space Diplomacy.
❖ GSAT-7: It was launched in 2013. It is a communication defense satellite for the Navy. It is also named as
Rukmini.
❖ GSAT-7A: It was launched in 2018. It is a communication defense satellite for the Air Force. It is also named
as Angry Bird.
❖ GSAT-7B: It is planned to be launched as a communication defense satellite for the Army.
Weather Satellite (MET-SAT) of India:
❖ It is placed in the Geo-Stationary orbit.
❖ The payload consists of a sounder and an imager.
❖ The sounder gives the vertical profile of temperature and humidity.
❖ The imager consists of a camera that gives a wider view of the Indian subcontinent to locate clouds, monsoons,
cyclones, pressure belts etc.
 5

❖ The data produced by the weather satellites are analyzed by supercomputers for weather information and
weather forecasting.
Weather Satellite (MET-SAT) of India:
❖ MET-SAT-1: It was launched in 2002.
It is the first dedicated weather
satellite of India. It is renamed as
Kalpana-1.
❖ INSAT-3D: It was launched in 2013. It
is an advanced weather satellite.
❖ INSAT-3DR: It was launched in 2016.
It is an advanced weather satellite.
❖ With the launch of advanced weather
satellites, India became part of the
International satellite based search
and rescue system and it provides
important information for search and
rescue in the Asia Pacific region.
