Cartosat-2F

Cartosat-2F is the eight satellite in the Cartosat-2 series. It is an Earth observation satellite launched on the PSLV-C40 mission by the Indian Space Research Organisation.[2] The PSLV-C40 launch was initially placed on hiatus following failures with the nose cone and satellite deployment systems of PSLV-C39, but was cleared to launch once these issues were resolved.[3] It was launched at 09:29 local time from First Launch Pad at Sriharikota Range on January 12, 2018,[4] the third of the series to be launched within a year.[5] After 16 minutes and 37, Cartosat-2F was separated from the launch vehicle, and the ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network took control of the satellite for maneuvers to its desired orbit.[4] The launch also marked the 100th satellite successfully put into orbit by the ISRO.[6]

PSLV-C40/Cartosat-2 Series

CartoSat 2 (Image Credit ISRO)
Mission type	Reconnaissance
Operator	IRSO[1]
COSPAR ID	2018-004A
SATCAT no.	43111
Website	Cartosat 2 Series Satellite
Mission duration	Planned: 5 years Elapsed: 2 years, 5 months, 10 days
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft type	Earth Observation
Manufacturer	ISRO
Launch mass	710 Kg
Power	986 Watts
Start of mission
Launch date	03:59:00, 12 January 2018 (UTC) (2018-01-12T03:59:00UTC)
Rocket	PSLV-C40
Launch site	Satish Dhavan Space Center, Sriharikotta, India
Contractor	ISRO
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Circular polar Sun Synchronous
Regime	Sun-synchronous orbit
Inclination	97.47 Degree
Period	94.72 Minute
Cartosat series

Originally, Cartosat-2E was published as the last Cartosat-2 satellite to be launched, as Cartosat-3 series spacecraft were scheduled to launch in 2018. Cartosat-2F was first listed on launch schedules as Cartosat-2ER, a name possibly indicating it was originally a replica of Cartosat-2E to be used as a spare.[7]

Like other satellites in the series, Cartosat-2F was built on an IRS-2 bus. It uses reaction wheels, magnetorquers, and hydrazine-fueled reaction control thrusters for stability. It has a design service life of five years.[5] Cartosat-2F has two main remote sensing instruments, a panchromatic camera called PAN and a four channel visible/near infrared radiometer called HRMX.[2]

The first image returned by the mission, on January 15, 2018; was of Holkar Stadium and the surrounding community in Indore, Madhya Pradesh.[8] The PAN camera is designed to have a spatial resolution less than one meter and a swath width of ten kilometers.[9]