Chandrayaan-2 will carry 13 scientific satellites with it. The satellite will take off on July 15, ISRO chairman Dr K Sivan announced at a press conference Wednesday.
Chandrayaan 2, India’s mission to the Moon will take off on July 15 at 2.51 am, ISRO chairperson Dr K Sivan announced at a press conference Wednesday. Chandrayaan-2 will carry 13 scientific satellites with it and weighs about 3.8 tonnes, the equivalent of eight elephants, Sivan said.
Chandrayaan-2 will explore the southern part of the Moon, Sivan added, making India the first country to do so.
The ISRO chairperson said this mission is the most complex one ever undertaken by the organisation.
How will Chandrayaan 2 land on the Moon?
According to a statement issued by ISRO, Chandrayaan-2, India’s second lunar mission, will have three modules — Orbiter, Lander (Vikram) & Rover (Pragyan).The orbiter and lander modules will be interfaced mechanically and stacked together as an integrated module and accommodated inside GSLV MK-III, the launch vehicle.
The Rover is housed inside the Lander. After its launch by GSLV MK-III, the integrated module will reach the Moon orbit using the Orbiter propulsion module.
Following this, the Lander will separate from the Orbiter and soft land at a predetermined site close to the lunar South Pole.
The Rover will roll out and carry out scientific experiments on the lunar surface. Instruments are also mounted on Lander and Orbiter for carrying out scientific experiments.
Chandrayaan-2 is an advanced version of the previous Chandrayaan-1 mission, which was launched about 10 years ago.
Chandrayaan-1 had 11 payloads — five from India, three from Europe, two from the US and one from Bulgaria — and the mission had the credit for discovery of water on the lunar surface.
The 1.4-tonne spacecraft was launched using PSLV and the orbiter had orbited 100 km from the lunar surface.
What is Chandrayaan 2?
The space shuttle will explore the southern part of the moon making India the first country to do so. It will carry 13 scientific satellites and will weigh about 3.8 tonnes, Sivan claimed.
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chairperson Dr K Sivan announced on Wednesday that Chandrayaan 2, India’s mission to the Moon, will be launched on July 15 at 2.51 pm. The space shuttle will explore the southern part of the moon making India the first country to do so. It will carry 13 scientific satellites and will weigh about 3.8 tonnes, Sivan said.
Chandrayaan 2 is India’s second lunar mission with three modules: the Orbiter, Lander (Vikram) and Rover (Pragyan). The Orbiter and Lander will be mechanically interfaced and stacked together as an integrated module inside the launch vehicle, GSLV MK-III.
After being launched into earth-bound orbit, the module will use orbiter propulsion module to reach the Moon orbit. The Lander will separate from the Orbiter and soft land at the predetermined site close to Moon’s South pole. The Rover, which is housed inside the Lander, will carry out scientific experiments on the surface of the moon. Lander and Orbiter too are mounted with instruments to help carry out experiments.
On June 8, the space organisation announced that the CE-20 engine, meant for the upper stage of GSLV MK-III was successfully launched. The engine may be used in GSLV MK-III launch vehicle for the Gaganyaan Mission.
This mission is being touted as the most complex one ever undertaken by ISRO.
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