LOC14:53
11:53 GMT
NEW DELHI, Jan 20 (KUNA) -- Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on Wednesday successfully launched India's fifth navigation satellite from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre located in Sriharikota in the South Indian state of Andhra Pradesh.
The Indian Space Department said in a statement that the ISRO successfully put into the orbit the fifth satellite (IRNSS1-E) which is part of the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System weighing 1425 kg on board the locally developed 320-tonne-heavy Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle at 9 30 AM and the satellite reached the lower orbit, some 503 km above the earth, after 20 minutes.
ISRO Chairman A S Kiran Kumar told the IANS after the launch: "We have begun the new year with a successful launch and a precise injection of the fifth navigational satellite in the intended orbit."
Satellite director of Indian space agency M Annadurai said that with this successful launching, the Indian Space Organization has put into the orbit five satellites of the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System, adding that the ISRO is getting ready to launch two more satellites in the coming two months to complete the constellation of seven satellites and to its own space navigation system.
Both Indian President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated the scientists at the ISRO on the successful mission. (end)
atk.mt