Countdown begins for Indian rocket's flight Monday

Chennai, June 28 (IANS) The 49-hour countdown has begun for the launch Monday of an Indian rocket carrying five foreign satellites, the space agency ISRO said Saturday.

According to Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), the countdown for the launch of the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) Monday 9.52 a.m. began at 8.52 a.m. on Saturday.

The rocket will take off from ISRO's rocket port at Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh, around 80 km from here.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to witness the rocket launch.

The five satellites are from four countries.

The rocket's main luggage will be the 714-kg French earth observation satellite SPOT-7. The other satellites are: 14-kg AISAT of Germany; NLS7.1 (CAN-X4) and NLS7.2 (CAN-X5) from Canada each weighing 15 kg; and the 7-kg VELOX-1 of Singapore.

The satellites are being launched under commercial arrangements that Antrix Corporation has entered into with the respective foreign agencies.