My Internship at Master Control Facility-ISRO, Hassan

Master Control facility | Department Of Space | Government Of India (mcf.gov.in)

Introduction:

Before all this happened, I’m a sophomore in Electronics Communication Engineering. Since I was small, I've been fascinated by the world of Space and Electronics. Partially because it's easy, intuitive for me and mainly because of my aunt who has served as my inspiration since I was small, she did her Diploma in Electronics and communication engineering, she aced every exam, Oppurtunites she ever came across with, one of it was at Master Control Facility, Hassan. Every time she visited our home, I used to ask her to take me to MCF-ISRO and show me what she does, even though I didn't know anything about it, but that place fascinated me. Now coming back to present I’m doing my Bachelors in Electronics and Communication from Dr Ambedkar Institute of Technology in Bengaluru, as per the New Education Policy, it was required for Engineering students to do an Internship at an Industry or Company, So I thought MCF which is at Hassan would be a great place for an internship, but I didn't know how to get one, so I enquired about with many others and I asked my Aunt about this, she said YES! and I could do it, and I had to approach the MCF-ISRO for an internship which is conducted by the PPEG dept of MCF, so I mailed them asking for a chance to do my internship at MCF during holidays,

About MCF-ISRO:

Master Control Facility (MCF) at Hassan in Karnataka and Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh monitors and controls all the Geostationary / Geosynchronous satellites of ISRO, namely, INSAT, GSAT, EOS, CMS and IRNSS series of satellites. MCF provides overall radio visibility coverage extending from Persian Gulf in the West to Australia in the East, a geo-arc of 150 degrees which makes it ideal control center in South Asian Region.

MCF has the expertise in operations of Indian Geosynchronous Space assets for Communication, Navigation and Metrological Payloads. All these geosynchronous satellites are being monitored, operated and maintained in the desired orbit.

MCF Vision:

Manage Space Assets in Geosynchronous orbit, while providing seamless services for Societal and Strategic Applications.

MCF Mission:

• Effective & efficient Monitoring & Control of Communication, Navigation and Meteorological Spacecrafts from launch to end of life.
• Bring out continuous improvement and automation through developmental activities in Spacecraft and Ground Operations for Enhanced Services, Resource Optimization and Indigenization.

Functions of MCF:

1. To Monitor and Control Geo-synchronous satellites for different applications like Communication, Navigation and Earth observation.
2. Responsible for the total Spacecraft life, starting from injection of satellite in space from launch vehicle to decommissioning the satellite at the end of life.
3. Launch Operations-Launch and Early Orbit Phase operations (LEOP) by deploying TTC antennas at Hassan and Bhopal, establishing a global TTC Network by hiring stations from external agencies, establishing required communication Links, Fly-By Coordination with other agencies, In-Orbit Testing (IOT) Payload, User Coordination for Service activation or Migration etc.

INSAT-1B

1. On-orbit Operations- Spacecraft Health monitoring and Control, Orbit management- Ranging, Orbit Determination, Colocation Management, Station-keeping and Orbital Repositioning, Space Situational Awareness (SSA) Activities, Payload Management, Eclipse Operations, Orbital Life Estimation, Spacecraft Contingency Handling, User coordination, Carrier and Interference Monitoring & Resolution etc.
2. Establishing and Maintenance of infrastructure for Launch (LEOP) Operations, IOT of payload, On-Orbit operations — Antenna, RF, Baseband & Computer Systems, Civil, Electrical and Air Conditioning Systems etc.
3. Promote and encourage student community by providing opportunities for Schools, Colleges and Academia in Space Science activities.

OUTREACH PROGRAMS:

MCF is actively engaged in different types of outreach activities viz., educating students about science and technology, conducting training programs for different level of students from primary to post graduates, visiting schools and demonstrating science experiments with respect to science and technology, conducting internship, projects and training program for students as well as technical faculties etc.

MCF is constantly encouraging space technology enthusiasts through world space week, Vikram sarabahi centenary programs, conducing exhibition on space technology and many other programs.

• Students outreach programsInitial Phase (LEOP)
• Science and Technology Lectures and training
• World Space Week
• Vikram Sarabhai Centenary Program
• Internship Programs
• Project Work
• RESPOND

As a part of the Student Outreach Programs, the guys at MCF-ISRO were very helpful and inciteful for the procedures involved in the application process, I waited for few days, and I got a reply email from PPEG dept of MCF-ISRO, notifying me that I could start my internship at MCF-ISRO from October, I was overjoyed and so happy that I tripped out of my study table 😂.

I’m very much Thankful to S.K Khuba Sir and Jagannath Sir for guiding me through the process of application and giving me an opportunity at MCF-ISRO, I’ll utilize this wonderful opportunity to my fullest and work hard towards achieving my goals😊.

I’ll be posting my Complete Internship journey at Master Control Facility here at Medium and my LinkedIn .