Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully launched PSLV-C47 carrying CARTOSAT-3 and 13 other American nano-satellites from Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota.

The space agency launched CARTOSAT-3 satellite, ninth in the series, from the second launch pad at the spaceport of Sriharikota, about 120 km from here on November 27 at 09.28 am.

PSLV-C47 on its 49th mission carried CARTOSAT-3 along with 13 commercial nano-satellites from the United States. CARTOSAT-3 is a third-generation agile advanced satellite having high-resolution imaging capability.
With an overall mass of 1,625 kg, CARTOSAT-3 would address the increased user's demands for large scale urban planning, rural resource and infrastructure development, coastal land use and land cover.

PSLV-C47 is the 21st flight of PSLV in the 'XL' configuration (with six solid strap-on motors), ISRO said.

The 13 commercial nano-satellites from the United States was carried as part of the commercial arrangement with NewSpace India Ltd (NSIL), Department of Space.

Among the 13 nano-satellites are FLOCK-4P, 12 in numbers, with mission objective of earth observation, and one satellite named MESHBED, whose mission objective is a communication test bed.

ISRO said Wednesday's launch would be the 74th launch vehicle mission from Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota. The mission life of CARTOSAT-3 would be for five years. The launch of CARTOSAT-3 and 13 other commercial nano-satellites follows ISRO's moon mission Chandrayaan-2 on July 22, which failed to manage a soft landing on the moon, and would have been the country's first had it been successful.

While the Orbiter continues to revolve around the moon, the lander 'Vikram' and rover 'Pragyan' were rendered non- functional after a hard-landing on the lunar surface on September 7.

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