Why in news?

The heaviest rocket of the Indian Space Research Organisation, the LVM3-M2 OneWeb India-1, with 36 satellites on board took off from the second launch pad (SLP) of the Satish Dhawan Space Centre

Highlights

• LVM3-M2 is the dedicated commercial satellite mission of NewSpace India Ltd. (NSIL), a Central public sector enterprise under the Department of Space.
• With this launch, LVM3 is making its entry into the “global commercial launch service market”.
• This mission is being undertaken as part of the commercial arrangement entered into between NSIL and Network Access Associates Limited (m/s OneWeb Ltd), a U.K.-based company.
• As part of this mission 36 OneWeb Gen-1 satellites, meant for global connectivity needs, will be launched into circular low earth orbit of 601 km altitude.
• This mission is the fifth flight of LVM3 and this is the first Indian rocket with a six tonne payload.
• This is the first ever commercial launch of LVM3 with a heaviest payload to LEO. The LVM3 was conceived primarily for launching geostationary satellites with a payload capacity of 4T, which can be used for launching 6T payloads for LEO.