‘EOS-02 satellite will be launched in second quarter of 2022,’ says Union Minister Jitendra Singh

Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology Jitendra Singh said that EOS-02 satellite will be launched in second quarter of 2022.

In a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday  Jitendra Singh said, EOS-02 is Technology demonstration satellite for various new technologies with applications that include agriculture, forestry, geology, hydrology, miniaturised power electronics, reaction wheels etc. and forming the payload for SSLV-1.

He informed that the slated date of launch was during Quarter-4 of 2021, but the onset of the pandemic and consequent lock down and disruption in global as well as domestic supply chain were factors for the delay of spacecraft realisation due to non-availability of components, man power and facilities.

Dwelling on the reasons for the failure of the launch of the EOS-3 satellite, Jitendra Singh said, initial investigations with the post-flight data conducted immediately after the launch indicated that an anomaly in the Cryogenic Upper Stage led to failure of the mission.

A National level Failure Analysis Committee (FAC) consisting of experts from academia & ISRO was immediately constituted to identify the causes of the anomaly in the Cryogenic Upper Stage of GSLV, that led to mission abort and to recommend corrective actions for future missions.

The Committee observed that the build-up of pressure in the propellant (Liquid Hydrogen or LH2) tank during the flight was not normal leading to a lower tank pressure at the time of ignition of the engine. This resulted in anomalous operation of the Fuel Booster Turbo Pump (FBTP) mounted inside the LH2 tank which feeds the main turbopump of the engine resulting in insufficient flow of Liquid Hydrogen into the engine thrust chamber.

The Minister informed that the Failure Analysis committee has recommended improvements to enhance the robustness of the Cryogenic Upper Stage for future GSLV missions. The GSLV vehicle with the required modifications in the Cryogenic Upper Stage is expected to be ready by the third quarter of 2022.

The satellite identified for the next GSLV mission is expected to be ready for launch in the fourth quarter of 2022. Therefore, no delay is envisaged with respect to the related projects due to the failure.