Posted: Sun, Jun 6, 2004, 2:00 PM ET (1800 GMT)
The Indian space agency announced this weekend that it has signed a contract to launch an unidentified European satellite next year, according to Indian media reports. G Madhavan Nair, chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), said Saturday that the agency had signed a contract with the European Union to launch a satellite late next year. The identity of the satellite was not announced, although Nair said it was being built by an Italian firm. The satellite will be launched on a Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV). While ISRO has launched foreign payloads, including those from Europe, on its vehicles in the past, this will be the first time such a satellite would be the primary payload. The launch contract was valued at $10 million.
