Indian launch vehicle capability classification India’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), designed around the early 1990s, is intended to place roughly 1000 kg class spacecraft into which type of orbit?

Introduction / Context:
Launch vehicles are tailored for specific orbital classes. India’s PSLV is known for its reliability and its suitability for Earth-observation payloads, which typically require sun-synchronous polar orbits (SSO) for consistent lighting conditions during imaging passes.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• PSLV design era: early 1990s.
• Typical payload mass ~1000 kg to SSO/LEO.
• Primary missions: remote sensing, Earth observation, and scientific payloads benefiting from sun-synchronous geometry.

Concept / Approach:

Sun-synchronous polar orbits maintain a nearly constant local solar time at the ground track, providing repeatable lighting conditions—ideal for imaging satellites. PSLV’s performance and staging were optimized for such orbits, not for direct GEO insertion (which is the domain of GSLV class vehicles).

Step-by-Step Solution:

Verification / Alternative check:

ISRO mission records list numerous PSLV launches inserting payloads into SSO, confirming the vehicle’s primary role.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:

Geostationary requires a different vehicle class; pure equatorial LEO is not the main objective; “polar” is close but SSO is the precise specification; Molniya is highly elliptical and not PSLV’s standard target.

Common Pitfalls:

Confusing PSLV with GSLV/LMV capabilities; mixing “polar” with the more specific “sun-synchronous.”

Final Answer:

Sun-synchronous polar orbit