Adding another satellite to the number of its existing ones, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has successfully launched earth observation satellite RISAT-2B from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota at 5:30 AM.

The 615 kg satellite, which had been lifted off by the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, PSLV-C46, was released into the orbit 15 minutes after the lift-off. Replacing the RISAT-2, which was launched in 2009, RISAT-2B has been designed for application in fields such as surveillance, agriculture, forestry and disaster management support.

The spy satellite is capable of providing clear view during the day, night and even under adverse weather conditions. After the launch, lauding its several new features, ISRO Chairman K Sivan announced that RISAT-2B has "special imaging capabilities to take strips of images and mosaics of images". It has expanded Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) making it an advanced earth observation satellite, he added.

Defence Minister N Sitharaman after the launch tweeted: