Isro BluBird launch
SRIHARIKOTA: India’s heavy-lift rocket LVM3 on Wednesday successfully placed the US communications satellite- BlueBird Block-2 – into low Earth orbit, in an early morning launch mission. At 6100kg, it was the heaviest payload lifted by the rocket which completed its sixth operational flight and third dedicated commercial mission.The 43.5m tall and 640tonne rocket lifted off from the Second Launch Pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota. About 16 minutes after liftoff, BlueBird Block-2 was injected into a circular orbit at an altitude of around 520km with an inclination of 53degrees.The mission, designated LVM3-M6, was undertaken as part of a commercial agreement between NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), the commercial arm of Isro, and US-based AST & Science LLC. BlueBird Block-2 is part of a global low Earth orbit constellation aimed at enabling direct-to-mobile satellite connectivity.According to mission details, the satellite features a 223 square metre phased-array antenna, making it the largest commercial communications satellite deployed in low Earth orbit. The constellation is designed to support 4G and 5G voice and video calls, video streaming, text messaging and data services directly on standard mobile phones, without the need for specialised ground equipment.