Days after it launched successfully from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, the NVS-02, part of India's homegrown navigational constellation, the NVS-02 is in trouble.
The NVS-02 satellite has encountered a critical issue due to a faulty valve that supplies oxidizer to the Liquid Apogee Motor (LAM).
This failure has prevented the satellite from executing orbit-raising manoeuvres, leaving it stranded in a geosynchronous transfer orbit (GTO) instead of reaching its intended near-circular orbit, which is essential for optimal navigation operations.
The GSLV had deployed the satellite in the GTO after a textbook 100th launch from Sriharikota. It is worth mentioning that following the deployment, the spacecraft was to be moved into a higher orbit when the problem was detected.
As the valve failed to open, an official at Isro on condition of anonymity, said that it locked oxidizer flow and prevented the LAM from firing.
As a result, ISRO has not been able to adjust the satellite’s orbit.
Despite this setback, the satellite remains fully functional, with power generation, communication, and control systems operating normally.
Engineers are now exploring alternative strategies to use the satellite in its current elliptical orbit. While a final decision is pending, ISRO may attempt to repurpose the mission to maximize its utility despite the propulsion failure.
The NVS-02 satellite is the second satellite in India’s next-generation NavIC system, a regional satellite navigation system designed to provide precise positioning, velocity, and timing data for users across India and up to 1,500 km beyond its borders.
NavIC offers two types of services: Standard Positioning Service (SPS), which provides location accuracy better than 20 meters and timing accuracy better than 40 nanoseconds across the core service area, and Restricted Service (RS), which is a more secure service for authorised users.
