ISRO set to launch Earth Observation Satellite on Jan 12
Chennai (PTI): ISRO will kick off its 2026 launch calendar on January 12 with the PSLV C62 mission to deploy the EOS-N1 earth observation satellite and 14 other payloads into space.
Undertaken by the NewSpace India Ltd (NSIL), the commercial arm of ISRO, the 14 other co-passenger satellites belong to domestic and overseas customers.
"The integration of the vehicle and the satellites has been completed and pre-launch checks are in progress. The PSLV-C62 mission is proposed to lift-off on January 12 at 10.17 hrs, from the first launch pad at Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota," ISRO said on Saturday.
The 25-hour countdown is scheduled to commence on January 11, for the mission which would be the 64th flight of PSLV.
The Earth Observation Satellite has been built jointly by Thailand and the United Kingdom, ISRO said.
The entire mission is expected to be more than two hours after lift off at 10.17 am on January 12.
The primary payload - 'Earth Observation Satellite' built by Thailand and the United Kingdom, will fly piggyback along with 13 other co-passenger satellites, which would be deployed into the intended sun-synchronous orbit around 17 minutes after lift-off.
However, the separation of the fourth stage of the rocket (PS4) and demonstration of Kestrel Initial Technology Demonstrator (KID) capsule belonging to a Spanish startup, is expected to take place in over 2 hours after the launch.
ISRO said scientists would restart the fourth stage of the rocket to demonstrate the KID capsule to make its re-entry into the earth atmosphere. For this to occur, the scientists would re-start the fourth stage to de-boost and enter a re-entry trajectory, and this will be followed by the KID capsule separation.
Both the PS4 stage and the KID capsule (which will be the last co-passenger) will re-enter the Earth's atmosphere and make a splashdown in the South Pacific Ocean, ISRO said.
PSLV has completed 63 flights so far, including the ambitious Chandrayaan-1, Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM), and Aditya-L1 mission.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Hearing in defamation case against Rahul Gandhi postponed till March 27
Sultanpur (UP) (PTI): Hearing in the defamation case involving Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, which was scheduled to take place on Monday at the MP-MLA Court in Uttar Pradesh's Sultanpur district, could not take place due to the non-appearance of the plaintiff Vijay Mishra.
The court will now hear this matter on March 27.
Santosh Kumar Pandey, the advocate of the plaintiff, on Monday said that he had submitted a formal application to the court during the previous hearing.
This application requested that the audio and video recordings of the statements made by Rahul Gandhi, which have been presented as evidence, be matched with Rahul Gandhi's authentic voice.
Due to Vijay Mishra's absence, the court has scheduled the next hearing for March 27, when the arguments in the case will be presented.
On February 20, Gandhi, the MP from Raebareli, had appeared before the court and recorded his statement, claiming the case was filed against him due to political vendetta. He had also told the court that the audio and video evidence submitted by the complainant was incorrect and said he would present his own evidence.
The case stems from Gandhi's alleged objectionable remarks against then BJP president Amit Shah during the 2018 Karnataka election campaign.
Following the remarks, Mishra, a resident of Hanumanganj under Kotwali Dehat police station area in Sultanpur, filed the defamation complaint.
In December 2023, the court had issued a warrant against Gandhi after he failed to appear before it. He later surrendered before the court in February 2024 and was granted bail on two surety bonds of Rs 25,000 each.
