Elon Musk's SpaceX launches Indian satellite on Falcon 9 rocket
Elon Musk's SpaceX launched the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)'s most sophisticated communications satellite, which will provide broadband services in remote areas and in-flight Internet in passenger aircraft.
The satellite was set off for its 34-minute journey into outer space onboard Elon Musk-owned SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket.
The Falcon 9 rocket was lifted off at 12.01 am from Space Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral in US's Florida.
Deployment of @NSIL_India GSAT-N2 confirmed pic.twitter.com/AHYjp9Zn6S
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) November 18, 2024
"Hoping to see the launch go well. And all the best to the team," ISRO Chairman S Somanath said in a recorded message available to the media.
Since the satellite weighed 4,700 kg and was too heavy for Indian rockets to carry, it necessitated a foreign commercial launch.
The launch pad has been hired by SpaceX from the US Space Force. The mission life of GSAT-N2 is 14 years.
This is the first time that ISRO is launching a satellite on a SpaceX rocket through its commercial arm New Space India Limited (NSIL).
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