Indian googler

A small satellite, said to be the country’s smallest, designed by engineering students, might just offer some respite for the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) after the disappointing failure of the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV-D3).

This satellite is scheduled to be launched in the first week of May.
At a function held at the NIITE Meenakshi Institute of Technology (NMIT) here on Saturday, a replica of STUDSAT (the student satellite), a student initiated satellite project of Pico-category was handed over to Dr T K Alex, Director of ISRO by the Governor, H R Bhardwaj.
The satellite developed by the engineering students, weighs less than one kg and is designed to operate in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at an altitude of 680 Km. The payload of the satellite consists of a CMOS camera capable of capturing images with a ground resolution of approximately 90 metres. The mission life of the satellite is estimated to be six months.
The satellite has been developed by a consortium of seven engineering colleges from Bangalore and Hyderabad led by NMIT. A total of about 30 students were involved in the project.
Weather study

Chetan Angadi, the project leader said that he was very happy with the completion of the project as it would benefit the nation immensely. “The data collected by the satellite can be used for weather study, vegetation and landscaping” he said.
Dr Jharna Majumdar, coordinator, project STUDSAT praised the students for their sacrifice and dedication as few of the core members had already graduated and some of whom had even refused lucrative job offers solely for the completion of the project.
Dr T K Alex ISRO director said that it was a landmark event for India. “The benefits of satellite technology can be seen in every sphere of human activity ranging from communications, meterological calculations to disaster management” he said.