BENGALURU, Jan 12: India’s latest space mission encountered a flight path error on Monday morning, prompting ISRO scientists to initiate an immediate data analysis to save the mission’s objectives. The Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle showed signs of instability just as it was completing its third solid-fuel burn over the Bay of Bengal.
The mission, operated by NewSpace India Limited, was intended to deploy the hyperspectral imaging satellite EOS-N1 into a polar orbit. However, telemetry data indicated that the rocket began to roll unexpectedly, drifting away from the precise corridor required for satellite injection. ISRO Chairperson V Narayanan noted that the disturbance appeared quite suddenly after a seemingly textbook start to the countdown and ascent.
“We are seeing a little more disturbance in the vehicle roll rates and subsequently there is a deviation observed in the flight path,” Narayanan said. He added that the team is working to understand the data collected from various tracking stations to determine why the vehicle lost its orientation at such a critical juncture.
The flight was also notable for carrying a specialized re-entry prototype from a Spanish startup, designed to test atmospheric splashdown technologies in the South Pacific. While the PSLV has a storied history of successful flights, including missions to the Moon and Mars, this latest anomaly marks a repeat of the technical hurdles that stalled the program’s previous attempt in the middle of last year.
