India conducted a "textbook" launch of its biggest satellite rocket yesterday after technical trouble last month forced the maiden flight to be aborted, space agency officials said.
The launch paved the way for India to join an elite band of nations able to fire big satellites deep into space and could also give the nuclear-capable country the ability to test a wide range of military technologies, Western defence experts said.
The mission was completed with "textbook precision and will lead us to achieve self-reliance in satellite launch technology", the Indian Space Research Organisation chairman, Mr K. Kasturirangan, said.
The rocket blasted off into a brilliant blue sky as scientists and their families cheered from the rooftops at the space centre, 100 km north of Madras.
The Geo-synchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle, or GSLVD1, put an experimental satellite payload of 1,540 kg into the designated orbit 17 minutes after blasting off from Sriharikota space port in south-eastern India.
Closed-circuit cameras showed elated scientists hugging and congratulating each other after the launch that capped a 10-year project costing 14 billion rupees (€300 million).
The Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, said the launch was "a proud day for India".
After one of the engines failed to deliver enough thrust last month, the space agency refused to allow live TV coverage of yesterday's launch. Millions watched last time when the launch was aborted at the final second as flames licked the engines.
The rocket needs two successful tests to be declared operational.
Space agency officials would not say when the second flight would occur but said the rocket would be ready next year.
Signals from the satellite were later picked up in Canada, the space agency said.
Only the United States, Russia, Japan, China and the European Space Agency can hoist large satellites into space. In the past, India has used Europe's Arianespace to launch its big satellites.