India’s set to become the fourth country to join space race by launching a low-cost mission to land a probe on the moon.
The Chandrayaan 2 will blast off from ISRO’s Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota, a tropical island off Andhra Pradesh coast, after a 10-year-long build-up. The mission will showcase mankind’s progress in space travel since Neil Armstrong’s Apollo 11 mission.
Amitabha Ghosh, a scientist for NASA's Rover mission to Mars, said the benefits of Chandrayaan-2 are huge, compared to its cost. "A spacecraft mission of the complexity of Chandrayaan-2 conveys a message that India is capable of delivering on difficult technology development endeavours," said Ghosh.
Chandrayaan 2 objective
The solar-powered rover can travel up to 500 metres and is expected to work for one lunar day, the equivalent of 14 Earth days.
ISRO chief K Sivan said Vikram's 15-minute final descent "will be the most terrifying moments as we have never undertaken such a complex mission". Sivan said the probe will be looking for signs of water and "a fossil record of the early solar system".
Chandrayaan 2: The cost involved
India has spent about $144 million to get Chandrayaan-2 ready for the 384,400-km trip to the landing spot on the lunar South Pole on September 6.
In comparison, the US has spent about $25 billion on 15 Apollo missions, including the six that put Armstrong and other astronauts on the moon. China, which landed its Chang'e 4 lunar craft in January, spent $8.4 billion on its entire space programme in 2017, according to international Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development figures.
Meanwhile, Russia -- the first country to land an unmanned moon rocket in 1966 -- spent over $20 billion at today's values on lunar missions in the 1960s and 70s.
Chandrayaan 2 to set off with India’s most powerful rocket launcher
Almost the entire Chandrayaan-2's orbiter, lander and rover have been designed and made in India.
India’s most powerful rocket launcher GSLV Mk III will carry the 2.4-tonne orbiter.
The spacecraft will carry the 1.4-tonne lander Vikram -- which in turn will take the 27-kg rover Pragyan -- to a high plain between two craters on the lunar South Pole.
Moon landing sites
Chandrayaan 2 launch timing, where to watch live stream
The Chandrayaan-2 launch will take place at 2:51 am on Monday, July 15. Those wanting to watch the Chandrayaan 2 launch live have several choices. The Chandrayaan 2 launch will be live telecast on Doordarshan, which usually covers such launches with commentary and visuals from the space centre’s control room. Besides, the Chandrayaan 2 launch live stream can also be viewed on Doordarshan’s YouTube channel.
With AFP inputs
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