Ya'll Nibbiars
2012
26 April 2012
India successfully launches its first indigenous radar imaging satellite. The Risat‐I will orbit the earth at an altitude
of 480km (300mi) and has the ability to collect images despite cloud cover or darkness, which is useful for
monitoring crops and natural disasters such as floods and droughts. Although the satellite is suitable for defense‐
related surveillance, Indian Space Research Organization Chairman K. Radhakrishnan asserted that “this is not a
spy satellite.”
‐‐ Jay Menon, “India Puts Risat‐I into Space,” Aerospace Daily & Defense Report, 27 April 2012,
www.lexisnexis.com; “Earth Observation Satellites,” Indian Space Research Organisation,, www.isro.org; V.
Ayyappan, “RISAT‐I, First Microwave Radar Imaging Satellite, Launched Successfully,” The Times of India, 26 April
2012, http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com; Nirmala Ganapathy, “India Launches ‘Eye in the Sky’ Satellite; Meant
Mainly for Agriculture and Disaster Control, It Can Also Be Used for Defence Needs,” The Straits Times, 27 April
2012,
www.lexisnexis.com.
20 April 2012
India is developing multiple independently‐targetable reentry vehicle (MIRV) technology for its Agni‐V missile. V.K.
Saraswat – chief of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) –states that the “work is on” to
equip India’s longest‐range missile with the capacity to carry multiple warheads on a single missile.
‐‐ “Agni‐V May be Equipped with Multiple Warheads: DRDO Chief,” The Economic Times (India), 10 May 2012,
http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com; Vipin Narang and Christopher Clary, “Capability Without Strategy,”
Indian Express, 22 May 2012,
www.indianexpress.com.
19 April 2012
India successfully tests a nuclear‐capable long‐range ballistic missile (LRBM), its most powerful missile to date. The
three‐stage solid‐fueled, road‐mobile Agni‐V is designed to reach targets up to 5000km, and can carry a 1.5‐ton