IRS-1C is India's second generation operational Remote Sensing Satellite that was launched by ISRO on 28 December 1995 from Baikanur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan. This satellite had a mission life of 11 years and 8 months. This mission was carried out in Molniya launch vehicle and has a mass of 1250 Kg. This satellite carried payloads with enhanced capabilities like better spatial resolution additional spectral band, improved repetitivity and augment the remote sensing capability of the existing IRS-1A and IRS-1B satellites. IRS-1C was designed to provide advanced remote sensing services for various applications, including agriculture, forestry, land-use mapping, urban planning, water resources management, and disaster management. The satellite aimed to deliver high-resolution imagery and data to support resource management and environmental monitoring.
IRS-1C was equipped with three primary payloads - PAN camera (Panchromatic Camera), LISS-III (Linear Imaging Self-Scanning Sensor-III), and WiFS (Wide Field Sensor).
- PAN Camera (Panchromatic Camera): Provided high-resolution imagery with a spatial resolution of 5.8 meters and a swath width of 70 kilometers.
- LISS-III (Linear Imaging Self-Scanning Sensor-III): Offered multispectral imagery with a spatial resolution of 23.5 meters in visible and near-infrared bands and 70.5 meters in shortwave infrared bands, with a swath width of 142 kilometers.
- WiFS (Wide Field Sensor): Provided coarse-resolution imagery with a spatial resolution of 188 meters and a swath width of 810 kilometers, suitable for large-area monitoring.
