ISRO competes with none but its own history. After several firsts and achievements in the past, India’s premier space organisation has yet again scored an incredible success. In its 13th flight, India’s workhorse Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C9) blasted off successfully from Satish Dhawan Space station, Sriharikota, and launched a cluster of 10 satellites in a single mission, marking a milestone for the country's 45-year-old space programme.

“The mission was perfect. Team ISRO has done it again," exclaimed a jubilant G Madhavan Nair, chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), after the success. "It is a historic moment for us because it is the first time that we have launched 10 satellites in a single mission," he added, congratulating Indian scientists who broke out into applause at the mission control centre.

The rocket's unprecedented payload included a 690-kg remote-sensing satellite Cartosat-2A, a 83-kg Indian Mini Satellite (IMS-1) and eight nanosatellites developed by foreign research institutions, including those from Germany and Canada. The satellites were deployed in orbit within minutes of each other in a rare space feat, with the entire mission lasting just about 20 minutes.

CARTOSAT-2A
CARTOSAT-2A is a state-of-the art remote sensing satellite with a spatial resolution of about one metre and swath of 9.6 km. The satellite carries a panchromatic camera (PAN) capable of taking black-and-white pictures in the visible region of electromagnetic spectrum. The highly agile CARTOSAT-2A is steerable along as well as across the direction of its movement to facilitate imaging of any area more frequently.

High-resolution data from CARTOSAT-2A will be invaluable in urban and rural development applications calling for large scale mapping.
While some reports say with a resolution of less than one meter will give India the capability to monitor missile launches by rivals Pakistan and China, the fact remains that India has become the second Asian country after Japan with this advanced capability in which the US is the world leader.

Its launch will fulfill a long-standing demand from the Indian military for a dedicated reconnaissance spacecraft. The satellite constellation will also study the oceans and monitor changes in winds across the seas.