SathyabamaSat

SathyabamaSat is a micro experimental satellite developed by students and faculty of Sathyabama University, Chennai to collect data on greenhouse gases (water vapor, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, methane and hydrogen fluoride).^[1] It was launched along with the Cartosat-2C satellite atop PSLV-C34. It was launched June 22, 2016.

SathyabamaSat

Mission type	Student Satellite
Operator	ISRO
COSPAR ID	2016-040B
SATCAT no.	41600
Mission duration	5 years
Spacecraft properties
Bus	PSLV-C34
Manufacturer	ISRO
Dry mass	1.5 kg
Start of mission
Launch date	June 22, 2016
Rocket	PSLV
Launch site	Satish Dhawan SLP
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric
Regime	Low Earth
Perigee altitude	502.9 km
Apogee altitude	525.2 km
Inclination	97.5 degrees

History

The development of SathyabamaSat was initiated in 2009 when ISRO and Sathyabama University signed a memorandum of understanding to support the design, development and launch of the satellite. Initially, a space technology centre was established to carry out preliminary studies about the project including advanced research in rocketry, satellites and space applications, the project was carried out with the assistance of ISRO scientists. As per the university, the objective of project was to provide development experience of compact space systems to students.^[2]

Payloads

The satellite uses ARGUS 1000 IR spectrometer to measure the densities of the green house gases over the region in which it moves.^[3] The satellite delivers the data to the On-Board Computer (OBC) for transmission, when it crosses the radio window of ground station, which is being built in Sathyabama University premises, Chennai, India.^[4]

Launch

The satellite was launched as a piggyback atop Cartosat-2C using PSLV-C34 on June 22, 2016.