We have often heard the journey of thousand miles begins with a single step. In case of ISRO this journey to space began on humble cycle and bullock cart. We all have seen the iconic picture of Dr. APJ kalam carrying rocket parts on bicycle towards the launch pad. From cycle to LMVM3 – M4 ISRO has covered a tremendous journey
India’s race to moon begins in 2009 with the successful launch of chandrayan-1, followed by the 97% successful chandrayan 2. The chandrayan 3 carry forwards the legacy of these mission fuelled by the hard work and aspirations of 100s of scientists and the visionary zeal thrusted by our honourable prime minister’s presence. It makes every indian proud to know that the combine total cost of chandrayan 1&2 950 cr and 615cr approximately is half than the tom cruise’s latest Mission Impossible:7 (2500 cr)
With the help of one of the worlds most powerful rocket launcher LMVM3 -M4 capablr of transporting 8000kg satellite in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) and 4000kg in Geostationary Transfer Orbit(GTO).
The composition of the mission
It contains a propulsion orbiter, a lander (Vikram) and a Rover (Pragyaan).
The scientific payloads like RAMBHA ( to study the near surface plasma density and its vhanges with time) chaSTE ( tonstudy the thermal environment), ILSA ( will messurevthe moon quakes)LIBS ( to determine elemental composition of lunar soil).
The Chandrayaan once it reached the LEO the scientists from satishdhavan centre started the propulsion motor and the space craft will enter at the langrange point. It a point where the gravitational pull of two large masses is precisely equal. After reaching this point on 19th August the chandrayaan started entering the moons eliptical orbit in reverse loop i.e one loop after the other and when the chandrayaan was 100 kms away from the moons surface the lander vikramdetatched itself from the propulsion module and will start its descend towards moons surface. The propulsion module will keep orbiting moon and acting as a relay communication system between lander, rover and the command center at earth.
The objectives of the mission are : To demonstrate Safe and Soft Landing on Lunar Surface. To demonstrate rover roving on the lunar surface. To condust In Situ scientific experiments.
Why south pole?
If successfully landed India will become the first country to soft land on moon’s south pole and fourth to achieve soft landing on moon after Russia, USA, and china.
Being on the farther side of the moon the south pole has mostly remained in dark and unexplored so it can give some of the earliest clues of the evolution of the earth, celestial bodies as well as the the universe.
It is believed that the south pole of the lunar surface holds significant quantities of ice that can be useful explore water, oxygen, and other essential minerals in the lunar surface.
Why soft landing?
If the vikram has not been soft landed then it could get crashed into the lunar surface as happened in tue case of chandrayaan 2
The soft landing was possible because of the 4 thrusters fitted like an engine which will give the bikram lander upward thrust and the exhaust nozzle acted like a gimble so that it slowly descends thus lands softly.
The real mission begings:
Once it soft lands the rover pragyaan weighing 27kgs will get detatched and will move around the landing area. It is supposed to roam around and will collect soil samples, conduct the molecular study and explore the lunar surface in the search of water as well as above mentioned scientific experiments. The pragyaan rover will rove over the lunar surface for about 14 days equivalent to 1 lunar day,which is the expected the life of the mission.
Why August 23:
As mentioned above the lunar day lasts for 14 earth days and because the instruments solar powered it requires sunlight. It crucial to land at the beginning of the lunar day. Moreover the temperature during lunar night drops to below -100 degrees C. The electronics are not specifically designed to erate at such low temperatures.
If it has not been Aug 23 another attempt can be made in the next day. If that’s also not feasible, then the chandrayaan will have to wait for one full month i.e 29 days to get one lunar day and night tp get over.
The tricolour has made its mark on the moon. With this it can be proved you don’t need millions of dollars to master the craft you just need the right efforts in right direction with lots of dedication and hardwork. The so called 3rd world country India that is Bharat has proved its technological prudence defeating the established space agencies like NASA of USA ROSCOMOS of Russia. Even the Russian space mission having the pioneers in space exploration failed to soft land the Luna-25. The state of the art technology displayed by ISRO has made the world envy. And the so caled “15 minutes of terror” turned out to be the beginnings of endless joy. The live telecast of the mission was viewed by over 36 crore people creating a world record in itself. Thus the ISRO has made the journey of not just thousand miles but millions miles look like a moonwalk.
To conclude it is just a beginning in coming couple of years ISRO is planning to send humans in space through gaganyaan as well as a mission to sun named Aditya L1.
