THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: From now onwards, when a rocket, carrying satellites, gets launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, it will be controlled from the launch control centre at the VSSC in Thumba. This is the first time the ISRO has set up a launch centre outside Sriharikota. The launch centre was set up in Thumba as numerous scientists and engineers were unable to go to Sriharikota due to the COVID crisis. About two hundred experts used to go to Sriharikota for each launch. The launch control system has been set up and it was tested on Saturday during the launch of the PSLV C-49 rocket. About half of the experts controlled the launch from ThumBa while the rest were in Sriharikota. The next launch can also be controlled from Thumba.

System at Thumba

• The rocket at the launch pad and the mission control centre are connected through underground cables.
• The computers in the control centre were connected to the centre in Thiruvananthapuram through a special line.
• The rocket control centre at Thumba is equipped with hundreds of computers, digital wall display screens, hotline communication systems and alert buttons.

Launch control

Once the rocket is set up, the launch control centre has control over the spacecraft until it lifts with the satellite and completes the mission. It is managed by a team of around 300 engineers and scientists. 200 people will be in front of the system boards while around a hundred people will be near the rocket. The mission will last for five to ten days. There are three stages. It is a system that monitors and ensures more than half a lakh points in three levels at each stage. The precision of this is the basis for the success of the rocket.