<p>The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is getting ready to send up a series of sounding rockets - rockets carrying instruments to measure the physical parameters of the upper atmosphere - from Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh and Thumba in Kerala to study the effects of the solar eclipse.<br /><br />The solar eclipse Friday will be for a duration of 11.8 minutes. The sounding rockets will be fired before and after. <br /><br />"On Jan 15 and 17, Rohini 560 (RH 560) sounding rockets will be launched in a parabolic flight path to measure various atmospheric and ionospheric parameters connected with the solar eclipse," Satish Dhawan Space Centre Associate Director MYS Prasad said from Sriharikota.<br /><br />The nine-metre RH 560 rockets weigh 1.5 tonnes and carry a 100-kg payload of instruments each. The two-stage rocket will take the instruments 500 km above the earth's surface.<br /><br />From Sriharikota, there will be one launch each on Friday and Sunday.<br /><br />Most of the rockets will be launched from ISRO's Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station (TERLS) in Kerala.<br /><br />According to ISRO officials, four rockets will be launched Thursday from TERLS and five Friday.<br /><br />The rockets fired from TERLS are smaller than RH 560. They will reach 75 to 120 km above the earth.<br /><br />A similar coordinated experiment was conducted in 1980 and since then ISRO has set up several facilities to study the data.</p>
<p>The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is getting ready to send up a series of sounding rockets - rockets carrying instruments to measure the physical parameters of the upper atmosphere - from Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh and Thumba in Kerala to study the effects of the solar eclipse.<br /><br />The solar eclipse Friday will be for a duration of 11.8 minutes. The sounding rockets will be fired before and after. <br /><br />"On Jan 15 and 17, Rohini 560 (RH 560) sounding rockets will be launched in a parabolic flight path to measure various atmospheric and ionospheric parameters connected with the solar eclipse," Satish Dhawan Space Centre Associate Director MYS Prasad said from Sriharikota.<br /><br />The nine-metre RH 560 rockets weigh 1.5 tonnes and carry a 100-kg payload of instruments each. The two-stage rocket will take the instruments 500 km above the earth's surface.<br /><br />From Sriharikota, there will be one launch each on Friday and Sunday.<br /><br />Most of the rockets will be launched from ISRO's Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station (TERLS) in Kerala.<br /><br />According to ISRO officials, four rockets will be launched Thursday from TERLS and five Friday.<br /><br />The rockets fired from TERLS are smaller than RH 560. They will reach 75 to 120 km above the earth.<br /><br />A similar coordinated experiment was conducted in 1980 and since then ISRO has set up several facilities to study the data.</p>
