India began deploying its second generation of indigenous navigation satellites Monday, with the launch of a GSLV Mk.II rocket lofting the NVS-01 satellite. Liftoff, from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, occurred at 05:12 UTC (10:42 a.m. local time).<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The Navigation with Indian Constellation, or NavIC, system is a regional satellite navigation network developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). Also known as the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS), the system\u2019s first generation consists of seven satellites in geosynchronous orbit \u2013 although a total of nine spacecraft have been launched, including replacements.<\/p>\n
IRNSS-1A, the first satellite in the series, was launched in July 2013, with the constellation reaching its full complement following the launch of IRNSS-1G in April 2016. After three years in orbit, the atomic clocks aboard IRNSS-1A began to develop faults, and IRNSS-1H was launched as a replacement in August 2017. This did not reach orbit after the payload fairing of its carrier rocket failed to separate, so IRNSS-1I was deployed instead in April 2018, becoming the final first-generation IRNSS satellite to launch.<\/p>\n
While IRNSS-1A is the only satellite in the constellation that ISRO has confirmed to have suffered failures of all its clocks, the agency has confirmed the failure of several other clocks across other satellites in the fleet. ISRO\u2019s annual report for 2020-21 noted that the IRNSS-1G satellite had also been moved to a secondary role, but did not identify the reason for this. NVS-01 is expected to take IRNSS-1G\u2019s slot in the constellation.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n