In a first, India launched KalamSat, its lightest satellite ever, which was designed by Spacekidz, a group of students based out of Chennai. Named after former president Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, the half kg satellite was moved to a higher circular orbit through launch vehicle PSLV C44.
Built at a cost of Rs 12 lakh, KalamSat will have a life span of two months. It will help students study communication system of nano satellites which can be useful in many fields, predominantly disaster management. It will enable new students to conduct experiments in space and has also created more opportunities for experimentation by other students.
The eight-member team which worked for nearly six years on this project, was mentored by Srimathy Kesan, Space Kidz India CEO.
“We have been working on the project for over six years now. These students are from various backgrounds and the youngest one is studying BSc Physics,” Kesan told PTI.
The satellite was designed to study 20 different weather parameters, collect data of four of these parameters per second, and store this data on a built-in SD card.
