Chandrayaan-2 Completes Second De-Orbiting Manoeuvre Ahead of Historic Landing: ISRO

The second de-orbiting manoeuvre of Chandrayaan -2 spacecraft was successfully carried out early Wednesday, the Indian Space Research Organisation said, inching towards achieving a historic soft-landing on the lunar surface. The nine-second de-orbiting or retro-orbiting manoeuvre was executed at 3:42am using the onboard propulsion system, the space agency said. "With this manoeuvre, the required orbit for the Vikram Lander to commence it descent towards the surface of the Moon is achieved," ISRO said in a statement. On Tuesday, the first de-orbiting manoeuvre for the spacecraft was carried out, a day after lander 'Vikram' was separated from the orbiter. While Chandrayaan-2 spacecraft continued to orbit the moon at a perigee of 96 km and apogee of 125 km, the Vikram Lander is at an orbit of 35 km perigee and 101 km apogee. "Both the Orbiter and Lander are healthy," the space agency said. It further said that moon lander Vikram is scheduled for a powered-descent between 1 am and 2 am on September 7, followed by touch down of Lander between 1:30am and 2:30am. ISRO Chairman K Sivan has said the proposed soft-landing on the Moon is going to be a "terrifying" moment as the ISRO has not done it before, whereas Lunar Orbit Insertion (LOI) manoeuvre was successfully carried out during the Chandrayaan-1 mission. Following the landing, the rover 'Pragyan' will roll out from 'Vikram' between 5:30-6:30 am on September 7, and carry out experiments on the lunar surface for a period of one lunar day, which is equal to 14 earth days. The mission life of the lander is also one lunar day, while the orbiter will continue its mission for a year.

India's Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle, GSLV MkIII-M1 had successfully launched the 3,840-kg Chandrayaan-2 spacecraft into the earth's orbit on July 22.

Chandrayaan-2 satellite had begun its journey towards the moon leaving the earth's orbit in the dark hours on August 14, after a crucial maneuver called Trans Lunar Insertion (TLI) that was carried out by ISRO to place the spacecraft on "Lunar Transfer Trajectory".

In a major milestone for India's second Moon mission, the Chandrayaan-2 spacecraft had successfully entered the lunar orbit on August 20 by performing Lunar Orbit Insertion (LOI) manoeuvre.

The health of the spacecraft is being continuously monitored from the Mission Operations Complex (MOX) at ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC) in Bengaluru with support from Indian Deep Space Network (IDSN) antennas at Bylalu, near Bengaluru, the space agency has said.

The orbiter carries eight scientific payloads for mapping the lunar surface and study the exosphere (outer atmosphere) of the Moon while the lander carries three scientific payloads to conduct surface and subsurface science experiments.

The rover carries two payloads to enhance the understanding of the lunar surface.

India's second lunar expedition would shed light on a completely unexplored section of the Moon, its South Polar region.

According to ISRO, the mission objective of Chandrayaan-2 is to develop and demonstrate the key technologies for end-to-end lunar mission capability, including soft-landing and roving on the lunar surface.

On the science front, this mission aims to further expand the knowledge about the moon through a detailed study of its topography, mineralogy, surface chemical composition, thermo-physical characteristics and atmosphere, leading to a better understanding of the origin and evolution of the moon, the space agency had said.

On successful completion, it will make India the fourth country after Russia, the US, and China to pull off a soft landing on the moon.

New Delhi in Talks With Moscow Over Rocket Engines for Indian Space Program

New Delhi and Moscow are negotiating the organisation of the India-based production of semi-cryogenic rocket engines using Russian technology for the South Asian country's space programme, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Chairman Kailasavadivoo Sivan said in an interview. "Russia is offering its semi-cryogenic rocket engine technology to India under the 'Make-in-India' programme. The rocket engines could be made in India and used in our rockets", Sivan told the news agency IANS. According to the official, this issue is currently under discussion, and no specific agreements have been reached yet. "What has been finalised is the agreement to train Indian cosmonauts by Russia for our human space mission Gaganyaan", the head of the Indian space agency added. The media earlier repeatedly reported about India's interest in Russian rocket engines without specifying either the type or model of the engine. Last week, the head of Russian space agency Roscosmos, Dmitry Rogozin, said that Russia might sell RD-180 engines to India. Russia's RD-180 engines are now exported to the United States. India plans to send its first crewed mission, set to include three astronauts, into space by 2022, to mark the 75th anniversary of its independence, with Russia set to assist it. Indian Ambassador to Russia Bala Venkatesh Varma earlier told Sputnik that Russia and India would start cooperating on the matter as early as 2019.

India launches spacecraft on Moon-landing mission

India launched a bid to become a leading space power Monday, sending up a rocket to put a craft on the surface of the Moon in what it called a "historic day" for the nation. Chandrayaan-2 -- or Moon Chariot 2 -- took off on time at 2:43 pm (0913 GMT) from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre on an island off the coast of Andhra Pradesh state. Applause broke out in the mission control room as the rocket blasted off into the grey skies over the Indian Ocean and mission control announced that the orbiter had broken away from the rocket with no problem. "Today is a historic day for space, science and tech in India," Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chief K. Sivan said. The launch came a week after a fuel leak forced a previous attempt to be scrubbed 56 minutes before the scheduled blast-off. The South Asian nation is bidding to follow Russia, the United States and China in landing a spacecraft on the Moon. President Ram Nath Kovind watched the launch alongside 7,000 dignitaries and flag-waving children. The rocket carried an orbiter, a lander and a rover, and has been almost entirely designed and made in India. The 2.4-tonne (5,300-pound) orbiter is expected to circle the Moon for about a year, taking images of the surface, looking for signs of water, and studying the atmosphere. The lander -- named after Vikram A. Sarabhai, the father of India's space programme -- will carry the rover and be placed on the surface near the lunar South Pole. The operation is expected to take place in early September. ISRO scientists will remotely control the rover named Pragyaan -- "wisdom" in Sanskrit -- as it carries out experiments. It will work for one lunar day, the equivalent of 14 Earth days, studying rocks and soil on the Moon's surface.

- National pride -

Former NASA scientist Kumar Krishen said India's space agency should be praised for taking on ambitious projects such Chandrayaan-2. "We should keep in mind that space exploration is risky as many systems have failed in the past and many lives lost," he told AFP. Aside from propelling India into the rarefied company of spacefaring nations, Chandrayaan-2 also stands out because of its low cost. About $140 million has been spent on preparations for the mission, a much smaller price tag compared with similar missions by other countries. The United States -- which is marking the 50th anniversary of Neil Armstrong becoming the first human on the Moon -- spent the equivalent of more than $100 billion on its Apollo missions. Chandrayaan-2, and India's space programme as a whole, are a source of national pride. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has vowed to send a manned mission into orbit by 2022, and India also hopes to seek out lucrative commercial satellite and orbiting deals.

The new mission comes almost 11 years after the launch of India's first lunar mission -- Chandrayaan-1 -- which orbited the Moon and searched for water.

India to make new bid to launch Moon rocket on Monday

India will make a new bid to launch a landmark mission to the Moon on Monday, a week after aborting lift-off at the last minute because of a fuel leak, officials said. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said it had rescheduled the launch of Chandrayaan-2, or Moon Chariot-2, for 2:43 pm (0913 GMT) on Monday. India is aiming to become just the fourth nation after Russia, the United States and China to land a spacecraft on the Moon. Indian space chiefs called off the planned launch of the rocket 56 minutes before blast-off on Monday morning because of what ISRO called a "technical snag". Media reports quoted ISRO scientists saying a helium fuel leak had been detected. India has spent about $140 million on preparations for the project, which is one of the cheapest among international space powers. By comparison, the United States spent about $25 billion -- the equivalent of more than $100 billion in current prices -- on 15 Apollo missions in the 1960s and 70s. The rocket will launch from a space centre in Sriharikota, an island off the coast of the southern state of Andhra Pradesh. It will carry an orbiter, lander and a rover which has been almost entirely designed and made in India. The orbiter is meant to keep circling the Moon for about one year, taking pictures of the surface and sending back information on the atmosphere. A lander named Vikram will take the rover to the surface near the lunar South Pole.

India's first lunar mission in 2008 -- Chandrayaan-1 -- did not land on the Moon, but carried out a search for water using radar.

A soft landing on the Moon would be a huge leap forward in India's space programme, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi determined to launch a manned mission into space by 2022.

India also has ambitions to land a probe on Mars. In 2014, India became only the fourth nation to put a satellite into orbit around the Red Planet.

India's Second Moon Mission as "Complex" as NASA's Apollo Mission

The Indian Space Agency had planned the launch of its second moon mission for October this year, but scientists reviewing their preparedness suggested that more tests were needed before the launch. The mission is now likely to be preceded by Israel's moon mission, planned for December this year. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has announced the postponement of its much-awaited second lunar mission - Chandrayaan 2. The mission was expected to be launched in October this year but ISRO says it will now conduct it in the first quarter of 2019. "We are aiming to launch the mission on January 3 next year, but the window to land on the lunar surface is open until March 2019. Chandrayaan-2 mission is the most complex mission attempted by ISRO so far. The mission has three components - orbiter, lander, and rover. We set up a committee of eminent scientists from across the country which studied the project and suggested changes. It is nothing less than the Apollo mission," ISRO Chairman K. Sivan told reporters in Bengaluru. Apollo was the NASA program that resulted in American astronauts' making a total of 11 spaceflights and walking on the moon. The first moon landing took place in 1969. The last moon landing was in 1972.

ISRO has increased the weight of Chandrayaan-2 by 600 kg as the space scientists had noticed during experiments that after the moon lander was ejected, the satellite would shake. So they decided that design modification was required for landing and the mass had to be increased.

The total estimated cost of the mission is about INR 8 billion ($124 million), which includes INR 2 billion ($31 million) at the cost of launching and INR 6 billion ($93 million) for the satellite.

ISRO has pointed out that the success rate of lunar landing missions is less than 50% as 27 had failed out of 47 lunar landings.

India to Experiment With Igloo-like Structures on the Moon

Indian scientists will use robots and 3D printers to build igloo-like structures using lunar soil and other suitable materials. Indian space scientists have already finalized five designs for such lunar habitats, according to a central minister. New Delhi (Sputnik) — In what could be India's biggest achievement in space exploration, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is experimenting with potential structures for lunar habitation, the Indian space minister informed the nation's parliament on Wednesday.  "ISRO along with academic institutions are performing experiments on potential structures for lunar habitation," Jitendra Singh, Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office, responsible for the Department of Space, informed the lower house of the parliament. Suman Balka, a member of the house, had asked him whether the ISRO had started working on building igloo-like habitats on the lunar surface for potential future missions and whether it was is planning to use the Moon as an outpost, like missions in Antarctica. 

  

"Various options are being studied about the requirements and complexities of habitats. The study is more towards futuristic developments," Singh responded.

The ISRO is planning to launch the Chandrayaan-II (Moon Mission-II) next month. This mission involves many complex elements like a soft landing, rover separation, and movement on the lunar surface, in addition to the operations of the Orbiter. The rover has been designed in such a way that it will have the power to spend a lunar day or 14 Earth days on the moon's surface and walk up to 150-200 meters. The rover will then send data and images of the lunar surface back to the Earth through the orbiter.

Several new technology elements have been developed indigenously and tests are being carried out for verification.

"Orbiter has completed the thermo-vacuum test, which is one of the major milestones. Lander sensors and actuators are tested on the ground to validate the performance and the results are satisfactory. The rover flight model is being assembled. Payloads are in various stages of delivery for spacecraft integration," Minister Jitendra Singh had said on 14 March when asked about the progress of the mission in Parliament.

ISRO had launched its first moon mission, Chandrayaan-I, in October 2008. Though the mission was expected to last for two years, it only lasted for roughly 10 months after the orbiter stopped communicating with the station in August 2009.