A commemorative postage stamp on the Launch of the First Indian Satellite, Aryabhatta, named after Aryabhata I, an ancient Indian astronomer and mathematician :

Issued by India

Issued on Apr 20, 1975

Issued for : On this historic occasion the Posts & Telegraphs Department feels privileged to bring out a special postage stamp.

Type : Stamp, Mint Condition

Colour : Red Purple and process blue

Denomination : 25 Paise

Overall Size : 3.91 X 2.90 cms.

Printing Size : 3.56 X 2.54 cms.

Perforation : 13 x 13

Watermark : Unwatermarked paper

Number Printed : 30,00,000

Number per issue sheet : 35

Printing Process : Photogravure

Designed and Printed at : India Security Press

About : 

• The launching of India’s first satellite ‘Aryabhata‘, named after the famous Indian astronomer and mathematician of the fifth century is a historic occasion and a milestone in India‘s space research programme.
  
• The diamond-shaped satellite has been designed and built by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) at its Indian Scientific Satellite Project in Bangalore. This 26-faced blue and violet spacecraft is 147 cms. in diameter and 116 cms. high.
  
• The satellite has been launched from a Soviet cosmodrome. Its orbit is 500 kms. above the earth circling it once in every 90 minutes. The satellite carries instruments to conduct experiments on X-ray astronomy, solar neutron and Gamma rays, and aeronomy. The data obtained from these three experiments brought in new information on outer space, the sun and the earth’s atmosphere.
  
• The data collected from the experiments are temporarily stored in tape-recorders on board and are transmitted in code to the ground receiving stations located at ISRO’s Sriharikota Range and a similar one near Moscow everytime the satellite passes over these stations.

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