📌 Topic 06 of 6 · Chapter 01 · Space Technology & ISRO
NAVIC, INSAT, IRS Satellites & Revision
NAVIC India’s GPS, INSAT, IRS, CARTOSAT — complete revision — UPSC & PSC exams.
📡 NAVIC — India’s Own GPS
- NAVIC = Navigation with Indian Constellation
- Official name: IRNSS (Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System)
- 7 satellites — 3 geostationary + 4 geosynchronous
- Coverage: India + 1,500 km around India
- Accuracy: 20 metres (standard); 10 metres (encrypted military signal)
- Developed as India’s own alternative to GPS (USA), GLONASS (Russia), Galileo (EU), BeiDou (China)
- Uses: navigation, disaster management, vehicle tracking, fishermen safety
- All 7 satellites operational; NAVIC-2 (next generation) under development
📡 India’s Satellite Series
| Series | Purpose | Key Facts |
|---|---|---|
| INSAT | Communication, meteorology, broadcasting | Indian National Satellite System; INSAT-1B (1983) = first operational; weather forecasting; TV broadcasting |
| GSAT | Communication | Geostationary satellites; GSAT-11 = India’s heaviest satellite (5.8 tonnes) |
| IRS | Remote sensing | Indian Remote Sensing; land use, agriculture, disaster management; IRS-1A (1988) = first |
| CARTOSAT | Cartography, mapping | High-resolution images; used for mapping, urban planning, defence |
| RISAT | Radar imaging | All-weather surveillance; works through clouds; used for defence and disaster management |
| RESOURCESAT | Natural resources | Agriculture, forestry, water resources monitoring |
| OCEANSAT | Ocean monitoring | Sea surface temperature, ocean colour, wind speed; fisheries |
✅ Chapter 01 — Complete Revision Checklist
✅ ISRO founded = August 15, 1969; HQ = Bengaluru
✅ Father of Indian Space Programme = Dr. Vikram Sarabhai
✅ First satellite = Aryabhata (1975); First Indian in space = Rakesh Sharma (1984)
✅ Launch centre = Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota (AP)
✅ Chandrayaan-1 (2008) = discovered water on Moon
✅ Chandrayaan-3 (2023) = landed on Moon’s south pole = August 23 = National Space Day
✅ India = 4th country to land on Moon; 1st near south pole
✅ Mangalyaan (2013) = India = first Asian country to reach Mars; first in maiden attempt
✅ Mangalyaan cost = ~₹450 crore = cheapest Mars mission in history
✅ Aditya-L1 (2023) = India’s first solar mission = L1 Lagrange point
✅ Gaganyaan = India’s first crewed mission = target 2025 = LVM3
✅ PSLV = “Workhorse of ISRO”; PSLV-C37 = 104 satellites world record
✅ LVM3 = heaviest rocket = Chandrayaan-2, Chandrayaan-3, Gaganyaan
✅ NAVIC = India’s GPS = 7 satellites = 20m accuracy = 1,500 km coverage
✅ Vyommitra = humanoid robot for Gaganyaan test flights
✅ Father of Indian Space Programme = Dr. Vikram Sarabhai
✅ First satellite = Aryabhata (1975); First Indian in space = Rakesh Sharma (1984)
✅ Launch centre = Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota (AP)
✅ Chandrayaan-1 (2008) = discovered water on Moon
✅ Chandrayaan-3 (2023) = landed on Moon’s south pole = August 23 = National Space Day
✅ India = 4th country to land on Moon; 1st near south pole
✅ Mangalyaan (2013) = India = first Asian country to reach Mars; first in maiden attempt
✅ Mangalyaan cost = ~₹450 crore = cheapest Mars mission in history
✅ Aditya-L1 (2023) = India’s first solar mission = L1 Lagrange point
✅ Gaganyaan = India’s first crewed mission = target 2025 = LVM3
✅ PSLV = “Workhorse of ISRO”; PSLV-C37 = 104 satellites world record
✅ LVM3 = heaviest rocket = Chandrayaan-2, Chandrayaan-3, Gaganyaan
✅ NAVIC = India’s GPS = 7 satellites = 20m accuracy = 1,500 km coverage
✅ Vyommitra = humanoid robot for Gaganyaan test flights