Nellore, January 24: The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is launching the world's lightest satellite ‘Kalamsat’ made by Indian students at 11.40 pm today from the First Launch Pad (FLP) of Satish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR, Sriharikota. The satellite is being launched by Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) in its 46th flight. The ISRO has not charged a single rupee for the launch. The communication satellite, KalamSat, is designed and built by students who work with a private organisation called "Space Kidz India." Along with Kalamsat, the ISRO also launched Microsat-R, an imaging satellite, by the same launching vehicle.

Watch live streaming of the launch here:

The Kalamsat satellite weighs just 1.26 kilogram and is lighter than a laptop. The total cost for making this satellite is Rs 12 lakh, and it was ready in just six days. But the group took six years to perfect the satellite. The satellite is named after Former President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam as a tribute to him. Meanwhile, the Microsat-R weighs 700-kg. Notably, Kalamsat is the first satellite designed by an Indian Private entity to be launched by ISRO. In 2017, a 64-gram version of Kalamsat named as "Gulab Jamun" was launched by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), but it never reached the earth's orbit. ISRO Mumbai Exhibition: Satellite Aditya to be Launched Soon, Scientists Aim to Complete Mission 'Gaganyaan' Before 2022 Deadline.

PSLV is a four-stage launch vehicle with alternating solid and liquid stages. The PSLV with two strap-on configuration has been identified for this mission, and the configuration is designated as PSLV-DL. PSLV-C44 is the first mission of PSLV-DL and is a new variant of PSLV. In PSLV-C44, the fourth stage (PS4) of the vehicle will be moved to a higher circular orbit to establish an orbital platform for carrying out experiments.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jan 24, 2019 11:19 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).