INSAT-1A was an Indian

communications satellite A communications satellite is an artificial satellite that relays and amplifies radio telecommunication signals via a transponder; it creates a communication channel between a source transmitter and a receiver at different locations on Earth ...

which formed part of the

Indian National Satellite System The Indian National Satellite System or INSAT, is a series of multipurpose geostationary satellites launched by ISRO to satisfy the telecommunications, broadcasting, meteorology, and search and rescue operations. Commissioned in 1983, INSAT i ...

. Launched in 1982, it was operated in geostationary orbit at a longitude of 74° east. Following a series of failures, the satellite was abandoned in September 1982, less than 6 months into a seven-year mission. Built by

Ford Aerospace Ford Aerospace was the aerospace and defense division of Ford Motor Company. It was based in Dearborn, Michigan and was active from 1956 (originally as Philco and then Philco Ford) through 1990, when it was sold to the Loral Corporation. Major ...

and operated by the

, INSAT-1A was based upon a custom

satellite bus A satellite bus (or spacecraft bus) is the main body and structural component of a satellite or spacecraft, in which the payload and all scientific instruments are held. Bus-derived satellites are opposed to specially produced satellites. Bus- ...

developed for the

INSAT The Indian National Satellite System or INSAT, is a series of multipurpose geostationary satellites launched by ISRO to satisfy the telecommunications, broadcasting, meteorology, and search and rescue operations. Commissioned in 1983, INSAT i ...

-1 series. It had a mass at launch of , and was expected to operate for 7 years. The spacecraft carried 12 C and 3 S band transponders, powered by a single

solar array A photovoltaic system, also PV system or solar power system, is an electric power system designed to supply usable solar power by means of photovoltaics. It consists of an arrangement of several components, including solar panels to absorb and ...

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil List of government space agencies, space program ...

was contracted to launch INSAT-1A using a Delta 3910 rocket with a

PAM-D The Payload Assist Module (PAM) is a modular upper stage designed and built by McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing), using Thiokol Star-series solid propellant rocket motors. The PAM was used with the Space Shuttle, Delta, and Titan launchers and carri ...

upper stage. The launch occurred at 06:47 UTC on 10 April 1982, from Launch Complex 17A at

Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS) is an installation of the United States Space Force's Space Launch Delta 45, located on Cape Canaveral in Brevard County, Florida. Headquartered at the nearby Patrick Space Force Base, the statio ...

. The satellite was successfully inserted into

geosynchronous transfer orbit A geosynchronous transfer orbit or geostationary transfer orbit (GTO) is a type of geocentric orbit. Satellites that are destined for geosynchronous (GSO) or geostationary orbit (GEO) are (almost) always put into a GTO as an intermediate step f ...

, from which it raised itself into geostationary orbit. It received the

International Designator The International Designator, also known as COSPAR ID, is an international identifier assigned to artificial objects in space. It consists of the launch year, a three-digit incrementing launch number of that year and up to a three-letter code repr ...

1982-031A and

Satellite Catalog Number The Satellite Catalog Number (SATCAT, also known as NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense) Catalog Number, NORAD ID, USSPACECOM object number or simply catalog number, among similar variants) is a sequential nine-digit number assigned by the Un ...

13129. Following launch, INSAT-1A had some initial problems deploying its antennas, solar array and stabilisation boom. The C-band antenna could not be deployed for twelve days, and the solar array failed to extend fully, preventing the spacecraft generating enough power to conduct weather observation. The satellite's S-band transponders subsequently overheated and failed. The stabilisation boom failed to deploy altogether. Early in the satellite's mission a fault in a valve in its attitude control system was detected which caused the spacecraft to expend propellant at a greater rate than expected. On 4 September 1982 the satellite's primary earth-tracking sensor was temporarily deactivated to protect the system while the sun passed through its field of view. Owing to the failure of the stabilisation boom, the backup sensor was not oriented in the correct direction, instead being oriented towards the moon, which overloaded it and shut down the sensor. The satellite exhausted its remaining propellant supply trying to regain earth-lock, and was abandoned on 6 September. Due to the sudden nature of its failure, INSAT-1A was not removed from geosynchronous orbit. As of 10 November 2013 it is in an orbit with a

perigee An apsis (; ) is the farthest or nearest point in the orbit of a planetary body about its primary body. For example, the apsides of the Earth are called the aphelion and perihelion. General description There are two apsides in any ell ...

of , an

apogee An apsis (; ) is the farthest or nearest point in the orbit of a planetary body about its primary body. For example, the apsides of the Earth are called the aphelion and perihelion. General description There are two apsides in any ell ...

of ,

inclination Orbital inclination measures the tilt of an object's orbit around a celestial body. It is expressed as the angle between a reference plane and the orbital plane or axis of direction of the orbiting object. For a satellite orbiting the Eart ...

of 14.59 degrees and an

orbital period The orbital period (also revolution period) is the amount of time a given astronomical object takes to complete one orbit around another object. In astronomy, it usually applies to planets or asteroids orbiting the Sun, moons orbiting planets ...

of 23.93 hours.

References

{{Orbital launches in 1982 INSAT satellites Spacecraft launched in 1982 1982 in India Derelict satellites orbiting Earth