Pratham (satellite)

Pratham is an Indian ionospheric research satellite which will be operated by the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay as part of the Student Satellite Initiative. Its primary mission is to count electrons in the Earth's ionosphere.^[1]

Pratham

Pratham Final Flight Model
Mission type	Ionospheric Technology
Operator	IIT Bombay
COSPAR ID	2016-059A
SATCAT no.	41783
Website	Pratham, IIT Bombay Student Satellite Initiative
Mission duration	4 months
Spacecraft properties
Manufacturer	Student Satellite Lab, IIT Bombay
Launch mass	10.15 kilograms (22.4 lb)
Start of mission
Launch date	September 26, 2016
Rocket	PSLV
Launch site	Satish Dhawan, Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh
Contractor	ISRO
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric
Regime	Low Earth

The Pratham spacecraft is a cube with 30-centimetre (12 in) sides and a mass of around 10.15 kilograms (22.4 lb).^[2] It was conceptualized by a team of students under the supervision of Professor K. Sudhakar.^[3] Pratham was successfully launched on 26 September 2016 from Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh along with 7 other satellites on PSLV C-35.

Mission

'Pratham' has a Four-fold Mission^[1] Statement:

1. Enabling students and faculty to gain knowledge and experience in the field of Satellite and Space Technology.
2. Empowering the Satellite Team with the skills to develop the Satellite through various phases of Design, Analysis, Fabrication and Testing until the Flight Model is made.
3. Launching the satellite into orbit and measuring Total Electron Count of the Ionosphere.
4. Involving students from other universities in our Satellite mission by building ground stations in their universities.^[4]

See also

• Spaceflight portal

• Jugnu (satellite)

External links

• Pratham - IIT Bombay Student Satellite Initiative