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Bhaskara-I and -II were two satellites built by theIndian Space Research Organisation that formed India's firstlow-Earth orbitEarth observation satellite. They collected data on oceanography and hydrology. The satellites are named after the ancient Indian mathematiciansBhāskara I andBhāskara II.^[1]R. M. Vasagam was the project director.^[2]

Bhaskara-I, weighing 444 kg at launch, was launched on 7 June 1979 fromKapustin Yar aboard the Intercosmos launch vehicle. It was placed in an orbitalperigee andapogee of 394 km and 399 km at an inclination of 50.7°.^[3] The satellite consisted of:

• Twotelevision cameras operating in visible (600 nanometre) and near-infrared (800 nanometre) that collected data related tohydrology,forestry andgeology.
• Satellite microwave radiometer (SAMIR) operating at 19 and 22 GHz for study of ocean-state, water vapour, liquid water content in the atmosphere, etc.
• An X-ray sky monitor operating in 2-10 keV energy range, to detect transient X-ray sources and monitor long-term spectral and intensity changes in the X-ray sources.

The satellite provided ocean and land surface data. It orbited at 541 × 557 km with an inclination of 50.7°.

While one of two onboard cameras malfunctioned, the satellite still sent back more than two thousand images. Housekeeping telemetry was received until re-entry in 1991.^[5]

• List of Indian satellites

• Earth observation satellites of India
• Satellites formerly orbiting Earth
• 1979 in the Soviet Union
• 1979 in India
• 1981 in the Soviet Union
• 1981 in India
• India–Soviet Union relations
• Satellites in low Earth orbit
• Satellite series

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