Chennai, April 25: The Indian space agency has recalled its communication satellite GSAT-11 from Arianespace's rocket port in Kourou in French Guiana, said Arianespace.
"Due to additional technical checks with the Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) GSAT-11 satellite, to be conducted from the ISRO Satellite Centre (ISAC) located in Bengaluru, the Ariane 5 launch initially planned for May 25, VA243, has been postponed," Arianespace said on Wednesday.
The GSAT-11 was planned to be launched mid May. The satellite had reached Arianespace's rocket port in March.
GSAT-11 was designed, assembled and integrated by the ISRO, and will have an estimated lift-off mass of 5,870 kg.
This advanced communications satellite is to provide multi-spot beam coverage over the Indian mainland and nearby islands, bringing significant advantages to the user community when compared with India's existing INSAT/GSAT satellite systems, Arianespace said earlier in a statement.
With its new system architecture and cutting-edge technology elements, GSAT-11 will generate a capacity of more than 12 Gbps for users from a single platform, the statement added.
It is not known what has prompted ISRO to recall its 5.8-ton satellite GSAT-11 for further tests.
It may be recalled, ISRO lost communication contact with its GSAT-6A communication satellite soon after it was put into orbit on March 29.
ISRO suspects the failure of the power systems in the satellite for the loss of communication link.
"The satellites are powered by solar panels that charge the onboard batteries. The batteries are fully charged when the satellite is loaded on to the rocket.
"Even if there is a problem with the solar panel, then the battery power should have kicked in. Here the entire power system of the satellite seems to have failed," one space expert told IANS earlier.
According to experts, the power system could have failed due to some short circuiting or arcing resulting in what is known in the space terminology 'loss of lock' or loss of contact with the ground station.
Satellites in space are locked to ground stations for tracking and other purposes.
On March 29, Indian rocket Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) slung GSAT-6A in its intended orbit. From there the satellite was to be taken up further to its orbital slot by firing its onboard motors.
The first orbit raising operation was successfully carried out by firing the onboard motors for around 36 minutes on March 30 morning.
The second orbit raising operation of GSAT-6A satellite was also successful as its motors was fired for about 53 minutes on March 31.
After that the communication link got snapped.
Industry experts also said there has been instances where communication link with satellites got reestablished after a break of couple of days.
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Bengaluru, Feb 8 (PTI): The Metro rail ride in Bengaluru will be costlier by about 50 per cent as the Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) on Saturday effected a hike on the recommendation of the Fare Fixation Committee, which will come into force from Sunday onwards.
According to the BMRCL's press release, it has also introduced separate tariffs for peak and non-peak hours just like the hail taxi riders - Ola and Uber.
The maximum fare has been enhanced from Rs 60 to Rs 90 and the minimum balance has been increased from Rs 50 to Rs 90.
The fare for a travel between 0-2 kilometres will be Rs 10, 2 km to 4 km - Rs 20, 4 km to 6 km - Rs 30, 6 km to 8 km - Rs 40, 8 km to 10 km - Rs 50, 10 km to 12 km - Rs 60, 15 km to 20 km - Rs 70, 20 km to 25 km - Rs 80, 25 km to 30 km and above would be Rs 90.
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"The Fare Fixation Committee submitted its report recommending the revised fare structure on December 16, 2024. As per section 37 of the Metro Railway O&M Act, the recommendations made by the Fare Fixation Committee shall be binding on the Metro Railway Administration," BMRCL said.
Accordingly, with the due approval of BMRCL Board, the revised fare structure will come into effect from February 9, 2025.
Regarding the peak hour tariff system, the BMRCL said it will offer an additional five per cent discount on Smart cards at the rate of five per cent during peak hour along with five per cent off peak hour, which will be an effective 10 per cent for travel during off-peak hour based on the time of entry into the Metro system.
The non peak hours will resume from the time the Metro services start in the day up to 8 am, again from noon to 4 pm and 9 pm to closing hours on week days.
The Metro Rail authorities also said that there will be a discount offer on smart cards at the rate of 10 per cent on all Sundays and national holidays.
The hike comes close on the heels of 15 per cent hike in government bus fare in Karnataka.
Last month, Bengaluru Central MP, P C Mohan had posted on 'X' that the proposed hike in metro fare has been put on hold.
"BMRCL’s proposed 45% metro fare hike, set for Feb 1, has been put on hold. The Modi government has directed BMRCL to submit a comprehensive report before making any decision. A big win for the people of Bengaluru—ensuring transparency, accountability, and fair metro pricing," he said on 'X'.
Namma metro Fare Update :As per the Fare Fixation Committee’s recommendations, the revised fare structure takes effect from 9th Feb 2025. 5% discount on Smart Cards continues. Check the media release for details. pic.twitter.com/oEgv0kbcOZ
— ನಮ್ಮ ಮೆಟ್ರೋ (@OfficialBMRCL) February 8, 2025