SOLAR ARRAY, ANTENNAS AND SOLAR
SAIL/BOOM OF INSAT-3A
DEPLOYED
The Solar Array and
the two Antennas of INSAT-3A were deployed on April 15, 2003 by
commanding from Master Control Facility, Hassan.
In the first
operation, the Solar Array on the south side of the satellite
was deployed in two stages. The main solar panels were deployed
at 10.40 am IST, followed by the deployment of two side panels.
Then, the antenna reflector on the west side of the satellite
was deployed at 11.30 am IST and finally the antenna reflector
on the east side was deployed at 12.15 pm IST.
The Sun-tracking
solar array of INSAT-3A has a total area of 26.6 sq.m and it is
designed to generate 3.1 KW of power in orbit. The satellite has
two deployable antennas and one fixed antenna to carry out various
transmit and receive functions.
The three-axis
stabilization of INSAT-3A was carried out today, April 16, 2003
at 6 am IST. In this configuration, the spacecraft will be locked
to Earth continuously through the optical sensors, and will maintain
the correct attitude to look at the Earth in a stable manner.
The Momentum Wheels onboard the satellite were switched ON and
stabilized to the nominal speed of 4500 revolutions per minute
to provide gyroscopic stiffness and facilitate 3-axis stabilization.
The deployment
of the Solar Sail/Boom on the north side of the satellite was
carried out today shortly after 3-axis stabilization of the satellite.
With this, all
the deployment operations have been completed.
The health of
INSAT-3A is normal. The satellite is now located at 87.4 deg East
longitude and is moving towards its designated orbital slot of
93.5 deg East longitude.
