SRIHARIKOTA, India (AP) -- India successfully launched a rocket carrying a satellite on Wednesday, entering the club of space powers able to send commercial payloads into orbit.
The 1,540-kilogram (3,400-pound) communications satellite entered an orbit in synchrony with the earth 17 minutes after the 400-ton rocket launch at 3:43 p.m. (1013 GMT), said officials at India's Space Sport, 1,050 miles (1,700 kilometers) southeast of New Delhi.
The launch was shown on closed-circuit TV to reporters at the Space Port.
It was not shown on national television, however.
A previous attempt on March 28, when the launch was aborted in the last seconds due to a technical problem with one of the engines, was broadcast as millions of Indians watched.
Although the launch was not shown on Wednesday, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee appeared on national television immediately afterward to congratulate the personnel of the Indian Space Research Organization.
"The launch shows the determination and confidence of our scientists and engineers," he said. "It shows the spirit of self-reliance."
The March 28 failed launch occurred when "one of the strap-on engines did not develop the required thrust, so the computer automatically ordered a shutdown," K. Kasturi Rangan, chairman of the space research organization, said at the time.
The satellite launcher was designed to carry commercial payloads into space to orbit at the same speed as the earth rotates. That allows satellites to remain above the same point of land and transmit television and other communication signals.
With the successful launch, the product of 10 years of effort by Indian scientists, the country hopes to enter the multibillion dollar commercial satellite business.
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