GSLV launch 'delayed' due to leak

Launch called off barely an hour and 14 minutes prior to launch

It was probably a close shave for the GSLV this time around. The Rs 200 crore-odd project to launch the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV), which includes the cost of the launch vehicle and the GSAT-14 satellite, has been put on hold.

 

With barely only a hour and 14 minutes to go for lift off, the launch of India's heavy lift rocket and the communication satellite GSAT-14 was called off. ISRO sources said a "leak" had been detected and they were not sure when the countdown would restart. ISRO chiarman K Radhakrishnan said that the GSLV launch had been called off due to a technical snag. He told media, "Some problem was observed in the second stage fuel chamber and a revised timeline will be announced". The launch was scheduled for 4.50 pm today.

 

After the lift-off from SHAR or the Sriharikota Range in Andhra Pradesh coast, the GSLV is set to have a 17-minute flight to put the 1,982 kg satellite into a geostationary orbit.

 

It may be recalled that in 2010 the GSLV programme had two major setbacks. The first flight of a rocket with an Indian-made cryogenic engine failed as a crucial pump jammed. Then, on Christmas the same year, the rocket had to be destroyed in mid-air as veered off its path.

 

The ISRO chief had said a while ago that lessons have been learnt from the 2010 disasters and that minor modifications and extensive ground testing have been conducted.

 

The three stage GSLV consists of the first stage which is fired by a solid fuel, the second by liquid fuel and the third is the cryogenic engine.

 

The GSLV weighs 415 tonnes and is 49.13 metre metres tall, as tall as a 17-storey building. 

 

The success of the GSLV rocket is crucial in India's efforts to build heavy lift rockets capable of carrying payloads of up to four tonnes.