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Bangalore, India (SPX) Apr 19, 2006 The country's largest satellite integration and test facility, the ISRO Satellite Integration and Test Establishment (ISITE), opened on Monday. The establishment, one among the very few in the world and on par with the best, was inaugurated by national security adviser M K Narayanan. In his presidential address, Narayanan said he was awestruck by the technological capacity of ISRO's facility. The organisation was making tremendous strides in satellite design and development, he pointed out. The 100-acre establishment can integrate and test six satellites simultaneously, the highest ever in ISRO's current capacity to integrate and test satellites. Spread over 3 lakh sq ft - a 300-fold jump from the 1,000 sq ft in earlier days - the establishment houses four state-of-art facilities - the clean room for assembly, integration and testing of satellites, vacuum chamber that can simulate conditions in space, vibration facility which can produce vibrations similar to those that occur during actual launch of spacecraft and a unique antenna test facility that looks at actual working and conflict of signals in space. The establishment is set to integrate and test two satellites - the Insat 4-C, work on which commenced in January 2006 and is in progress, and the W2M, an European satellite which it will build for Paris-based EADS Astrium. ISRO-Antrix has a joint venture with EADS Astrium in the design and development of this satellite. While EADS will offer the payload, the bust and other sub-systems will be integrated entirely by ISRO. The contract was secured after the two companies made a joint bid for a satellite proposal floated by European company Eutelsat. This satellite will weigh 3,000 kg. ISRO has responded to two other international bids. The results are awaited. ISRO chairman Madhavan Nair said the country at present launches 1 and 1/2 Insat-class satellites and 1 IRS class satellite every 18 months. The country, he said, should work towards launching at least 4 Insat class, 2 IRS class and 3 to 4 mediumsize satellites in the future. The built-up area of the establishment is largest in the country, he said. K Kasturirangan, former ISRO chairman, observed that ISRO is on the verge of becoming a highly competitive global entity because of high technology facilities like ISITE. U R Rao, also former chairman of ISRO, recalled that India at one point was putting together satellites in sheds. Now, it has moved on to hi-technology facilities such as ISITE. This, he said, was achieved in the face of a difficult history that ISRO has had in terms of facilities. The scientists congratulated P S Goel, secretary, department of ocean development, for being the inspiration behind ISITE, and ISRO officials K N Shankar and Katti for mobilising and co-ordinating the work of hundreds of scientific personnel. Community Email This Article Comment On This Article Related Links India Space Research Organisation Space Technology News - Applications and Research
Graphene Provides Foundation For New Electronics
Washington DC (SPX) Apr 17, 2006A study of how electrons behave in circuitry made from ultrathin layers of graphite – known as graphene – suggests the material could provide the foundation for a new generation of nanometer scale devices that manipulate electrons as waves – much like photonic systems control light waves. |
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