Chandrayaan-1 Tiny Info

Chandrayaan-1, Moon-vehicle is India's first mission to the moon launched by India's national space agency the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). The unmanned lunar exploration mission includes a lunar orbiter and an impactor. India launched the spacecraft by a modified version of the PSLV C11 on 22 October 2008 from Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh at 06:22 IST (00:52 UTC). The vehicle was successfully inserted into lunar orbit on 8 November 2008.

On November 14, 2008, the Moon Impact Probe successfully separated from the moon-orbiting Chandrayaan at 20:06 and descended towards the lunar south pole in a controlled manner. The MIP impacted Shackleton Crater, of the lunar south pole, at 20:31 on 14 November 2008 releasing subsurface debris that could be analyzed for presence of water ice.

The estimated cost for the project is Rs. 386 crore (US$ 80 million).
The remote sensing lunar satellite had a mass of 1,380 kilograms (3,042 lb) at launch and 675 kilograms (1,488 lb) in lunar orbit and carries high resolution remote sensing equipment for visible, near infrared, and soft and hard X-ray frequencies. Over a two-year period, it is intended to survey the lunar surface to produce a complete map of its chemical characteristics and 3-dimensional topography. The polar regions are of special interest, as they might contain ice. The lunar mission carries five ISRO payloads and six payloads from other international space agencies including NASA, ESA, and the Bulgarian Aerospace Agency, which were carried free of cost.


Tom


DIRectory DIY

The DUI