GSAT-3, also known as EDUSAT, is designed for distance learning from elementary school to higher education. This was the country’s first specialized “Educational Satellite,” which provided the country with satellite-based two-way connections to classrooms for the delivery of educational content.
This is a geosynchronous satellite built on the I-2K bus. GSAT-3 shared 74oE longitude with METSAT (KALPANA-1) and INSAT-3C. Satcom Technology for Learning is an initiative taken by the government of India. The initiative has been taken to give Receive Only Terminals (ROT) and Satellite Interactive Terminals (SIT) to government schools and colleges to obtain the services of subject experts. It will propagate various schemes in areas where there is no internet access.
CEC EDUSAT Network
The Consortium for Educational Communication (CEC) is one of the University Grants Commission of India’s Inter-University Centres.
- It was founded to meet the demands of higher education via the use of television and growing information and communication technology (ICT).
- EDUSAT is a satellite solely dedicated to meeting the needs of the educational sector.
- The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) launched it on September 20, 2004, to address the country’s demand for an interactive satellite-based distance education system.
- Through IP-based technology, it has helped transform classroom teaching.
Functions of EDUSAT
- It encompasses the entire geographical territory of the country.
- It can deliver interactive and low-cost education.
- It can provide information consistency.
- The EDUSAT spot beams are more strong, and signals can be received with a smaller satellite dish.
- It is an entirely dedicated satellite to the cause of education.
- Virtual classrooms are beneficial in remote and rural schools. The teacher on the transmission end becomes virtually available to all virtual classrooms on the receiving end. This technique can aid in solving a teacher shortage if in-service training is provided to existing teachers in the most cost-effective manner.
- It can offer audiovisual media as well as interactive multimedia.