Essay Space Mission India

SPACE MISSIONS
When asked about their ambitions, many children often cite being an astronaut. It is
clear that the outer space fascinates young ones and gives them the chance to wonder
about the unexplored. Outer space is akin to magic not only for children but also adults
as well. With Chandrayaan-2 making headlines, this Rs. 1000 crore project is gracing the
headlines and conversations all across the world.
With such exposure and virtual reinforcements at our behest, it is important to

understand the grand success of the Indian aerospace sector. These are exciting times
for Indian space research paradigm and it is that we understand this stature and value.
India is fast progressing in the field of space research. It is emerging as a big name in
this field. The country is now capable of launching its own spacecraft. In fact, it offers
this service to many other countries. Now India has made landmark progress with the
launch of Chandrayan for its moon mission.
India started its space programme with the launch of first space satellite ‘Aryabhatta’ on
April 19, 1975. This space satellite was named after the great Indian astronomer and
mathematician of the 5th century, Aryabhatta. It was launched from a soviet
cosmodrome with the help of a Soviet rocket. It marked India’s giant leap and made her
the eleventh country to join the space club. Thereafter the second satellite ‘Bhaskara’
was launched on June 7, 1979. It was also launched from a Soviet cosmodrome.
It was followed by ‘Rohini’. It was the first Indian satellite put into the space by SLV-III,
an Indian rocket. It was launched from Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh on July 9, 1980. It
was developed by the scientists of ISRO. It was the success of the mission of SLV-III
which brought recognition to the space programme of India.
Thereafter, various satellites were launched like Rohini II, Bhaskara II, Apple, INSAT-1A
Rohini(RS-D-2), INSAT-1B etc. Now India offers telecommunication services to other
countries. The launching of satellites like IRS’s, ASLV’s, PSLV’s have placed India in the
exclusive club of four nations—USA, Russia, France and Israel. Captain Rakesh Sharma
was the first astronaut of India. Now the country enjoys a respectful position in the
countries of the world.
India’s space programme is primarily driven by the vision of great scientist Dr. Vikram
Sarabhai. He is considered as the Father of Indian Space Programme. The main objective
of India’s space programme has been to promote the development of application of
Space Science and technology for socio-economic benefits of the country.
The Indian Research Space Organization is undoubtedly one of the world's most
technologically advanced space agencies. Even though its budget is just a fraction of
what NASA gets, the space agency has proven that innovative technology can help you
achieve the same objectives at a much lower cost.
ISRO's Chandrayaan mission is one such example. Launched in October of 2008, this is
India's first mission to the moon. The launch of Chandrayaan 1 marked the start of
India's first-ever lunar program. It marked a milestone in the history of space
technology of India.
Chandrayaan 1 was launched on 22 October 2008 from Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh. It
used the indigenously developed Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-XL) rocket.
The spacecraft successfully entered the lunar orbit on 8 November 2008 and just six
days later, released its Moon Impact Probe. The Moon Impact Probe crashed near the
Shackleton crater on the same day. The Impact Probe crashed in such a way that the
subsurface lunar soil could be analyzed for traces of ice.
It carried a total of 11 payloads not only from ISRO but from various space agencies,
including NASA, the European Space Agency and the Bulgarian Aerospace Agency.
One of the mission’s major achievements was the discovery of a large number of water
molecules present in the Moon's soil. Scientists speculate that frozen water near the
Moon's south pole can be used for a variety of purposes such as generation of rocket
fuel, drinking purpose, oxygen generation and to grow plants. It also detected
magnesium, aluminium and silicon on the lunar surface. Global imaging of the moon is
another achievement of this mission
In August 2009, Chandrayaan 1 lost contact with the ground station when it was
hovering 200 km above the Moon's surface. After a while, ISRO officially declared that
the mission was over.
Though the probe was expected to last two years, numerous technical issues such as
failure of the star sensors and inadequate thermal shielding shortened the lifespan of
the spacecraft to just 312 days.
However, 95% of the mission objectives were already achieved. The project was a huge
step forward not only for ISRO but also for the world. It paved the way for future lunar
explorations.
The mission cost a mere $56 million and gave us crucial information about the Moon's
surface Following the success of Chandrayaan 1, the way for Chandrayaan 2 was
cleared.
Chandrayaan 2
Chandrayaan-2 was an Indian lunar mission that was supposed to explore the moon's
south polar region. Its aim was to improve our understanding of the moon discoveries
that will benefit India and humanity as a whole.
Why was Chandrayaan-2 going to the moon?

The moon is the closest cosmic body at which space discovery can be attempted and
documented. Moon provides the best linkage to Earth’s early history. It offers an
undisturbed historical record of the inner solar system environment.
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.
But why is Chandrayaan-2 exploring only the lunar south pole?

The lunar south pole is interesting because of the lunar surface area which remains in
shadow and 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, the south pole region has craters that are cold traps and contain a fossil
record of the early solar system.
Chandryaan-2 comprised of an Orbiter, Lander (Vikram) and a Rover (Pragyan)

Chandrayaan 2 was launched on July 22 from the same launch pad from which
Chandrayaan 1 had taken off. The spacecraft was expected to land on the Moon's surface
on September 7, 2019. According to NASA, the Moon's polar craters have the Solar
System's lowest temperature.
Also, ISRO had planned to test the capabilities of its lunar rover named Pragyan.
Weighing 27kg, the rover operates on solar power and travels at a speed of 1cm per
second. It was supposed to continuously perform chemical analysis of the soil and send
back to the Lander (named Vikram), which will update the ground station.
It was expected that the Rover would operate for 14 days. However, the orbiter will be
hovering over the moon at a distance of 100km and performing passive experiments
just like it did on Chandrayaan 1.
The launch was significant for a number of reasons, including the fact that, for the first
time in Indian history, a space mission was spearheaded by two women. Chandrayaan-2
is led by Muthayya Vanitha and Ritu Karidhal, the project director and mission director,
respectively.
The spacecraft began its journey towards the moon leaving the earth's orbit in the dark
hours on August 14. The spacecraft successfully entered the lunar orbit on August 20 by
performing Lunar Orbit Insertion (LOI) manoeuvre. On September 2, Vikram
successfully separated from the Orbiter, following which two de-orbiting manoeuvres
were performed to bring the Lander closer to the Moon.
India came 0.0006 per cent close to becoming the first country to do a soft-landing on
the lunar south pole. In the early hours of Saturday, as Prime Minister Modi looked on
and millions watched nationwide with bated breath, Vikram went silent just 2.1
kilometres above the lunar surface.
Chandrayaan 2 travelled a distance of 3,83,998 km out of 3,84,000 km between Earth

and Moon. But all isn't bad. Chandrayaan-2 will circle and study the Moon remotely for a
year, safely from the lunar orbit. A successful landing would have made India just the
fourth country to land a vessel on the lunar surface, and only the third to operate a
robotic rover there.
Isro is going through key data sets to ascertain Vikram's landing fate. Only 5 per cent of
the mission has been lost - the lander (Vikram), and Pragyan, the rover. The remaining
95 per cent, that is the Chandrayaan 2 orbiter, is orbiting the moon successfully.
As of now the Chandrayaan is till trying to establish contact with the lander Vikram and
locate its landing site while in orbit.
Even if the mission is not totally successful ISRO would have learnt a lot from its
experiences, motivating it to do better in the future. India is the only country in the
world which successfully completed its maiden interplanetary mission to Mars.
Mangalyaan was launched in 2013 and has completed almost four years in Mars' orbit.
This was a proud moment in the history of the organization since no other space agency
has been able to achieve this feat.
It also holds the world record for launching the most satellites in a single mission. Even
though ISRO lacks the resources and money compared to what NASA gets, it is
continually proving its dominance in the world with its innovative cost-effective
solutions.
Currently, with a budget of $1.2 billion, ISRO is ranked at number 5 in the world while
having almost a fraction of the budget when compared to other space agencies. NASA’s
budget for 2019 was $ 21.5 billion.
Though we have long way to go to catch up with countries like USA in the area of space
exploration, the journey we have achieved so far especially with the meagre resources
at our disposal, is highly praiseworthy and fills our heart with pride.
Jaihind!!!!!

Essay Space Mission India

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SPACE MISSIONS

With such exposure and virtual reinforcements at our behest, it is important to

Why was Chandrayaan-2 going to the moon?

But why is Chandrayaan-2 exploring only the lunar south pole?

Chandryaan-2 comprised of an Orbiter, Lander (Vikram) and a Rover (Pragyan)

Chandrayaan 2 travelled a distance of 3,83,998 km out of 3,84,000 km between Earth

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