The countdown to India’s second mission to the Moon has begun.
Chandrayaan-2 (“moon craft” in Sanskrit)will be launched at 14:43 hrs IST on Monday from Satish Dhawan Space Center at Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh, India, a week after the launch was previously called off due to a technical snag on July 15.
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISR0) will launch Chandrayaan-2 on-board GSLV Mk-III which will be broadcast live on social media.
If successful, this will be the Earth's first-ever mission on moon's South Pole and would also make India the fourth country after the US, Russia, and China to perform a "soft" landing on the moon and put a rover on it.
ISRO carried out a launch rehearsal on Saturday where the performance was termed ‘normal’.
Fully integrated GSLV MkIII-M1 at the Vehicle Assembly Building Source: ISRO
On Sunday, the launch countdown of GSLV Mk-III commenced with the fuelling of the space vehicle.
‘On Monday, the space vehicle will be injected into an earth parking 170 x 39120 km orbit.
‘A series of manoeuvres will be carried out to raise its orbit and put Chandrayaan-2 on Lunar Transfer Trajectory.
‘On entering Moon's sphere of influence, on-board thrusters will slow down the spacecraft for Lunar Capture.
‘The Orbit of Chandrayaan-2 around the moon will be circularized to 100x100 km orbit through a series of orbital manoeuvres.
‘On the day of landing, the lander will separate from the Orbiter and then perform a series of complex manoeuvres comprising of rough braking and fine braking.
‘The lander-Vikram will finally land near the South Pole of the moon on Sep 7, 2019,’ ISRO said.
Dr K Sivan, Chairman, ISRO in a press meet in June had said, how complex the mission was, as it depends on the highly demanding task of soft landing on the lunar surface, terming it as ’15 terrifying minutes’.
Pragyan Rover mounted on the ramp projecting from out of the sides of vikram lander Source: ISRO
India’s Chandrayaan-1 mission orbited the moon in 2008 and helped confirm the presence of water. ISRO hopes once the lander-Vikram lands near the South Pole of the moon, Rover will roll out and carry out experiments on the lunar surface for a period of 1 Lunar day which is equal to 14 Earth days.
‘Orbiter will continue its mission for the duration of one year’ ISRO said.
Why is India going to the moon?
The Moon is the closest cosmic body at which space discovery can be attempted and documented.
‘It is also a promising testbed to demonstrate technologies required for deep-space missions,’ ISRO says.
‘Chandrayaan 2 attempts to foster a new age of discovery, increase our understanding of space, stimulate the advancement of technology, promote global alliances, and inspire a future generation of explorers and scientists.’
What is the objective of Chandrayaan 2?
ISRO wants to conduct further studies on the extent of water molecule distribution on Moon’s surface after Chandrayaan-1 discovered the presence of water on the moon.
‘Extensive mapping of the lunar surface to study variations in lunar surface composition is essential to trace back the origin and evolution of the Moon.
‘Evidence for water molecules discovered by Chandrayaan-1, requires further studies on the extent of water molecule distribution on the surface, below the surface and in the tenuous lunar exosphere to address the origin of water on Moon.
The lunar South Pole is especially interesting because of the lunar surface area here that remains in shadow is much larger than that at the North Pole. There is a possibility of the presence of water in permanently shadowed areas around it. In addition, South Pole region has craters that are cold traps and contain a fossil record of the early Solar System,’ ISRO says.
