Whatsapp Facebook Twitter The GSAT-N2, a high throughput Ka-band satellite, will deliver high-speed broadband internet connectivity and digital video and audio transmission across India. New Space India Ltd is paying Elon Musk’s SpaceX Rs 500 crore to send the rocket to space tomorrow (November 19). But why isn’t the Indian Space Research Organisation launching it? NSIL will pay Elon Musk’s SpaceX Rs 500 crore for the launch. Reuters Of these, eight narrow spot beams will be over the Northeast and the others will be over the rest of India. The beams will be supported by hub stations located on the mainland. Advertisement Dr M Sankaran, director of UR Rao Satellite Centre in Bengaluru, told the outlet, “GSAT-20 is India’s highest throughput satellite.” Eighty per cent of the GSAT-N2’s capacity has been sold to a private player. The remaining 20 per cent will also be sold to private players in the aviation and maritime sectors, as per NDTV. As per Economic Times, the GSAT-N2 will give a fillip to the Centre’s ‘Smart City’ initiative. It will also help facilitate internet connectivity on planes. Why is India using SpaceX? Because of the satellite’s immense weight. The Isro’s Launch Vehicle Mark-III (LVM3) satellite, which is the Indian space agency’s ‘well-proven and reliable heavy lift launcher,’ can carry communication satellites weighing up to 4 tonnes into geosynchronous transfer orbits (GTO). Advertisement The LVM3, known as ‘Bahubali’ or ‘Fat Boy,’ can also lift off a payload of up to 8 tonnes into low earth orbit (LEO). The LVM3 recently launched the Chandrayaan-3 mission on its lunar journey. Before that, the rocket was used to launch the Chandrayaan-2 spacecraft in 2019. The Falcon 9 rocket, on the other hand, can deliver a payload of 8 tonnes into GTO, as per Economic Times. According to NDTV, this will be the NSIL’s first launch with SpaceX. It paid the Musk-owned company Rs 500 crore for the launch. Isro previously used France’s Arianespace to launch its biggest satellites. However, Arianespace currently has no commercial slots available for Isro to book. Advertisement This is because the company put its Ariane-5 rocket out to pasture last year, while the slots for the Ariane-6 have already been reserved. India does not consider using China’s commercial services, while Russia is engulfed in the war with Ukraine. This leaves SpaceX the only viable option, as per Economic Times. The state-owned NSIL earlier launched the GSAT-24 in June 2022. The GSAT-24’s full capacity was booked by satellite television service Tata Play. Isro is currently developing its Next Generation Launch Vehicle (NGLV) – which will help it launch satellites over 4 tonnes. The NGLV, at a budget of Rs 8,240 crore, will triple the LVM3’S payload capacity. Advertisement