Bangalore, May 23 (PTI) In the second orbit-raising manoeuvre, the Liquid Apogee Motor on board India's advanced communication satellite GSAT-8 was fired for nearly 36 minutes today by commanding the satellite from ISRO's Master Control Facility, Hassan.
With the LAM firing conducted at 12:22 PM for 35.8 minutes, GSAT-8 perigee (closest point to Earth) has been raised to 32,385 km. The apogee (farthest point to Earth) height remains at 35,768 km. The inclination of the orbit with respect to the equatorial plane has been reduced to 0.06 degree.
"GSAT-8 now has an orbital period of 22 hours 29 minutes.
The satellite will now be in the continuous radio visibility of MCF, Hassan", the Bangalore-headquartered ISRO said.
GSAT-8 was launched by the European Ariane-5 launch vehicle on May 21 from Kourou, French Guiana.