On 21st of July, the world celebrated the completion of 50 years of the return launch of Apollo 11. Today, the 22nd of July, 2019 is a very proud day for India. The long-awaited mission to the moon, Chandrayaan-2 has been finally launched by ISRO.
What is mission Chandrayaan-2?
The Chandrayaan-2 is a lunar exploration mission which is a follow-up to the previous mission, Chandrayaan-1. The Chandrayaan-1 was launched from Sriharikota Space Centre, Andhra Pradesh, India on 22nd of October, 2008. The project cost of Chandrayaan-2 is ₹978 crore (approximately US$141 million).
Why is the mission Chandrayaan-2 important?
The mission Chandrayaan-2 is important because through this, the scientists can explore the lunar south pole of the moon. The Chandrayaan-2 will make a soft landing on the south pole of the moon. The south pole of the moon remains under a shadow as compared to the north pole.
According to ISRO, there are chances of the presence of water in permanently shadowed areas around the moon. In earlier researches, scientists have found water in some parts of the moon. The mission Chandrayaan-2, will not only find more details about the lunar water in the moon but also, fossils, chemicals and craters.
What do you mean by a soft-landing?
A soft landing is a technical term which indicates, a landing technique that prevents any kind of damage to instruments on-board.
Where was a mission, Chandrayaan-2 launched?
Chandrayaan-2 was launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh, India. The mission, Chandrayaan-2 was accomplished through a rocket named, GSLV MKIII M1. The space shuttle is called Bahubali.
What is GSLV MKIII M1?
Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark III (GSLV Mk-III) is a three-stage, medium-lift launch vehicle manufactured by the Indian Space Research Organisation, ISRO. The launch vehicle consists of a lunar orbiter, lander and rover.
The orbiter will orbit the Moon to provide information about its surface. The mission’s lander is called Vikram. The lander is named after Vikram Sarabhai, who is known as the father of the Indian space programme. The mission’s rover is called Pragyaan. The rover’s mass is about 27 kg (60 lb) and will operate on solar power. The rover will search for chemical, water and fossils in the moon. The rover will then send the data to the lander, which is connected to the Earth station.
When was Chandrayaan-2 launched?
The mission, Chandrayaan-2 was launched on 22nd of July 2019, 14:43 IST ( 09:13 UTC).
Earlier, the mission was supposed to be launch on 15 July 2019 at 02:51 IST (14 July 2019, 21:21 UTC). Indian Space Research Organization called off the launch of the mission Chandrayaan-2 just 56 minutes before the lift-off. According to them, during a routine check on the rocket, there was a problem with the mechanism.
When will the lander and rover land on the moon?
The lander and rover are expected to land on the Moon on 6th of September 2019.