RAS question
APPLE (Ariane Passenger Payload Experiment) was India's first:
Correct answer: (D) Experimental communication satellite.
APPLE (Ariane Passenger Payload Experiment) was India’s first experimental geostationary communication satellite.
Explanation
APPLE was India’s first experimental geostationary communication satellite, not a remote-sensing, navigation or weather satellite. It was designed and built at the Space Applications Centre (SAC), where it completed the required tests. Ariane-1 launched it from Kourou on 19 June 1981. It demonstrated satellite television broadcasting, radio networking and data relay. These functions place APPLE in the communication-satellite category, distinct from later application-specific satellites such as the IRS remote-sensing series and the IRNSS navigation system.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Remote sensing is incorrect because IRS-1A, not APPLE, was India’s first remote-sensing satellite.
- (B) Navigation is incorrect because IRNSS-1A, not APPLE, was India’s first navigation satellite.
- (C) Weather satellite is incorrect because weather capability is associated with INSAT-1A, whereas APPLE is classified as an experimental communication satellite.
Concept
This tests the Science and Technology part of the RAS syllabus on India’s space programme and early ISRO satellite milestones. It recurs because RAS often asks candidates to distinguish firsts across communication, remote sensing, navigation and meteorological applications.