Aryabhata

Geography glossary

Topic: Transport and Communication in India · NCERT: Class 12, Ch 7 "Transport and Communication"

Meaning

Aryabhata was India's first satellite. ISRO designed and built it entirely in India, and it was launched on 19 April 1975 on a Soviet "C-1 Intercosmos" rocket from the Volgograd Launch Station, which is now in Russia [2].

  • It is named after Aryabhata, the 5th-century astronomer and mathematician.
  • It proved that India could build its own satellite, though it still needed a foreign rocket to launch one. This was the first step in India's space self-reliance.

Explanation

Who built it and how it reached space

  • ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation, India's national space agency) was founded in 1969.
  • Six years later, ISRO had completely designed and built Aryabhata in India [2].
  • India had no rocket of its own yet. So:
  • a Soviet C-1 Intercosmos rocket carried it,

  • from the Volgograd Launch Station in the Soviet Union (now in Russia) [2].

  • Result: India could make a satellite. It could not yet launch one. That came in 1980 with SLV-3.

Its build and orbit

  • Mass: 360 kg [2].
  • Orbit: 563 × 619 km, at an inclination of 50.7° [2].
  • Inclination: the angle between the satellite's path and the Equator.

  • 563 × 619 km gives the lowest and highest points of the orbit. The path is close to a circle and lies near Earth, so it is a low orbit, not a geostationary one (geostationary: a very high orbit over the Equator where a satellite seems to stay over one spot).

  • Power: 46 watts [2].

  • Communication: in the VHF band (a range of radio frequencies) [2].
  • Spin-stabilised [2]: it stayed steady by spinning, like a top.

Its scientific work

Aryabhata was a science satellite. It was not built for communication or remote sensing. It studied three areas [2]:

  • X-ray astronomy: studying X-rays that come from objects in space.
  • Aeronomy: studying the upper atmosphere.
  • Solar physics: studying the Sun.

Its life in space

  • Planned life: 6 months [2].
  • Actual working life: until March 1981, far longer than planned [2].
  • End: it fell back into the atmosphere on 10 February 1992, after about 17 years in orbit [2].

Where it occurs

  • Built in: India, by ISRO (founded 1969) [2].
  • Launched from: Volgograd Launch Station, then in the Soviet Union and now in Russia [2].
  • Launch vehicle: Soviet C-1 Intercosmos rocket [2].
  • Not launched from Sriharikota. SHAR Centre, Sriharikota (a barrier island on the Andhra Pradesh coast, on the Bay of Bengal) was first used for a successful satellite launch in 1980, when Rohini RS-1 went up [3].
  • Its place in India's early space programme:
Year Milestone Rocket and launch site
1969 ISRO founded —
19 Apr 1975 Aryabhata Soviet C-1 Intercosmos, Volgograd [2]
1975-76 SITE NASA's ATS-6 satellite
18 Jul 1980 Rohini RS-1 India's own SLV-3, Sriharikota [3]
19 Jun 1981 APPLE Ariane-1, Kourou, French Guiana [4]
1988 IRS-1A Baikonur (now Kazakhstan)

Don't confuse with

  • Rohini RS-1 (18 July 1980): Aryabhata was the first satellite India built. Rohini RS-1 was the first satellite India put into orbit with its own rocket, SLV-3, from Sriharikota [3].
  • APPLE (19 June 1981): Aryabhata was a science satellite in a low orbit. APPLE was ISRO's first experimental communication satellite, placed in geosynchronous orbit at 102° E and launched on Ariane-1 from Kourou, French Guiana [4].
  • SITE (1975-76): SITE ran in the same period, but it used NASA's ATS-6, an American satellite, to bring educational TV to about 2,400 villages [5]. Aryabhata did no TV broadcasting.
  • IRS-1A (1988): both went up from the Soviet Union. Aryabhata was launched from Volgograd (now Russia) [2]. IRS-1A was launched from Baikonur (now Kazakhstan) and was a remote-sensing satellite.

Prelims Hooks

  • Aryabhata was India's first satellite, launched on 19 April 1975 on a Soviet C-1 Intercosmos rocket from Volgograd Launch Station (now Russia), not from Sriharikota [2].
  • Trap: it was launched on a Soviet rocket, but it was completely designed and built in India by ISRO [2].
  • Facts: 360 kg, orbit 563 × 619 km, inclination 50.7°, 46 W power, VHF band, spin-stabilised [2].
  • Science work: X-ray astronomy, aeronomy and solar physics. It did no communication, TV or remote sensing [2].
  • Life: designed for 6 months, worked until March 1981, re-entered the atmosphere on 10 February 1992 after about 17 years [2].
  • Order: ISRO (1969) → Aryabhata (1975) → SITE (1975-76) → Rohini RS-1 (1980) → APPLE (1981) → INSAT-1B (1983) → IRS-1A (1988).

Mains Points

  • The first step to self-reliance in space (GS-III).
  • Aryabhata (1975) showed India could design and build a satellite. It still needed a Soviet rocket [2].
  • Rohini RS-1 on SLV-3 (1980) closed the launch gap [3]. PSLV later ended the need for foreign rockets for IRS satellites.

  • The path went from foreign rockets, to India's own rockets, to India's own navigation system (NavIC).

  • The base for strategic communication infrastructure.

  • The skills built through Aryabhata grew into APPLE, INSAT and GSAT.

  • These satellites now carry telecom, TV, weather forecasting, disaster warning and border surveillance, which matter for both the economy and security.

  • Value of international cooperation. Soviet launches (Aryabhata, IRS-1A), NASA's ATS-6 (SITE) and Ariane (APPLE) let India gain experience in space early, while it built up its own capability step by step.

Related concepts

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Sources

  1. 1Class 12, Ch 7 "Transport and Communication" (primary)
  2. 2ISRO — Aryabhataisro.gov.in · tier 1
  3. 3ISRO — Rohini Satellite RS-1isro.gov.in · tier 1
  4. 4ISRO — APPLEisro.gov.in · tier 1
  5. 5NASA NTRS — ATS-6: Satellite Instructional Television Experimentntrs.nasa.gov · tier 2