MUMBAI: Preparations are in its final stages for the launch of the Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) latest satellite, Insat-4A, on board the 169th flight of Ariane from Kourou, French Guyana. Doordarshan will telecast live the launch of Insat-4A, which will begin at 3:45 am on 22 December, 2005 on DD-National.

As already reported on Indiantelevision.com, the launch window for the Ariane-5 G, carrying Insat-4A and its co-passenger, a meteorological satellite, MSG-2 of the European EUMETSAT, is fixed between 04.03 am and 4.31 am.

Insat-4A is the first satellite to be launched in the Insat-4 series. It carries 12 high power Ku-band transponders (all leased out to the Tata-Sky DTH venture) to meet the requirement of direct-to-home (DTH) television services apart from 12 C-band transponders to augment the Insat capacity for communication and DTH services. Weighing 3080 kg at lift-off, Insat-4A is the heaviest satellite of ISRO so far.

The Master Control Facility (MCF) at Hassan in Karnataka is in readiness to take control of Insat-4A soon after Ariane-5 places it in the Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) of about 620 km x 36,000 km.

In the following days after launch, MCF will conduct operations like orbit raising manoeuvres to take the satellite into the final 36,000 km circular Geosynchronous Orbit.

Deployment of solar arrays and antennas will be carried out before positioning the satellite in its designated orbital slot of 83 degree East longitude along with Insat-2E and Insat-3B. MCF will also carry out regular operations and control of the satellite during its service life.