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New Delhi: India’s first mission to Mars will attempt to put a spacecraft in orbit around the red planet next week, in a crucial test of a low-cost project carrying the country’s hopes to join the leaders of a global space race.
A successful outcome for the Rs.450 crore mission would stiffen Prime Minister Narendra Modi ’s resolve to build new space launch facilities capable of handling heavier satellites, to make India a stronger player in the space technology market.
Launched last November, the Mars Orbiter Mission, called Mangalyaan, aims to study the
planet’s surface and mineral composition, and scan its atmosphere for methane, a chemical strongly tied to life on Earth.
If the spacecraft does manage to enter orbit around Mars on 24 September, India would become the first country to succeed on its
first try. European, US and Russian probes have managed to orbit or land on the planet,but only after several attempts.
“Confidence is high,” V. Koteswara Rao, scientific secretary at the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro), told Reuters .
“All the operations done so far are successful and all the parameters measured are normal.”
Isro has already uploaded commands to help the spacecraft automatically enter orbit on
the morning of 24 September.
http://www.livemint.com/Politics/J7eRxI1LjNWWU7IUMqiPoM/Indias-Mars-mission-enters-last-lap-faces-crucial-test-on.html
A successful outcome for the Rs.450 crore mission would stiffen Prime Minister Narendra Modi ’s resolve to build new space launch facilities capable of handling heavier satellites, to make India a stronger player in the space technology market.
Launched last November, the Mars Orbiter Mission, called Mangalyaan, aims to study the
planet’s surface and mineral composition, and scan its atmosphere for methane, a chemical strongly tied to life on Earth.
If the spacecraft does manage to enter orbit around Mars on 24 September, India would become the first country to succeed on its
first try. European, US and Russian probes have managed to orbit or land on the planet,but only after several attempts.
“Confidence is high,” V. Koteswara Rao, scientific secretary at the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro), told Reuters .
“All the operations done so far are successful and all the parameters measured are normal.”
Isro has already uploaded commands to help the spacecraft automatically enter orbit on
the morning of 24 September.
http://www.livemint.com/Politics/J7eRxI1LjNWWU7IUMqiPoM/Indias-Mars-mission-enters-last-lap-faces-crucial-test-on.html
