ISRO launches 20 satellites in a single flight

BENGALURU, India, June 22 (UPI) -- The Indian Space Research Organization, or ISRO, announced Wednesday that its Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle had successfully launched 20 satellites in one flight.

ISRO's Polar vehicle successfully launched the Cartosat-2 series satellite along with 19 co-passenger satellites Wednesday morning from the Satish Dhawan Space Center, the space agency said.

It marks the 35th consecutive successful launch for the Polar vehicle and the 14th in its current XL configuration.

After a flight of about 16 minutes, the satellites neared their intended orbit, ISRO said.

All 20 satellites separated from the launch vehicle in the following 10 minutes.

The two solar arrays for the Cartosat-2 satellite then deployed and a facility in Bangalore took control of the satellite.

It is expected to be brought to its final configuration in the coming days, ISRO said.

Cartosat-2 imagery will be used for a variety of applications, from cartography to land use, utility management, map creation, water distribution and other needs.

Of the 19 other satellites riding with the Cartosat-2, two were from universities, ISRO said.

The other satellites came from the United States, Canada, Germany and Indonesia.