Chandrayan-1 mission launched succesfully

Avinash R
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by Avinash R »

Mission moon: the young are gung ho
http://www.indiasnews.net/story/419743
Saturday 18th October, 2008 (IANS)

The student community in India's tech capital is quite busy these days, not just with preparations for the mid-term exams but with newfound interest to know more about the moon.

The credit for generating interest about the moon among the school and college-goers goes to India's lunar explorer, Chandrayaan-1 which is all set to be launched Oct 22 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.

'Our school gives special emphasis to science and its related branches. India's space research work is going to achieve a new milestone as it is all set for its maiden lunar mission and we're leaving no stone unturned to make the students aware about the entire moon mission,' Charles Noronha, vice-principal of St. Joseph's Boys' High School, told IANS.

The science club of the 150-year-old school on Museum Road in the centre of the city has been pretty active in making the students aware of India's maiden moon mission.

The members of the club, mostly students, have been busy giving lecture-demonstrations about the moon and what the moon mission intends to do during its two-year exploration trip.

'We're also encouraging the students to read on their own about the moon in science books and journals,' added the vice-principal.

'Sky gazing is my hobby and I spend hours admiring the celestial objects from my terrace at night. The moon has always fascinated me because of its grandeur and beauty. These days I am also reading a lot about the moon and its special features on the Internet and I'm waiting for the D-day when Chandrayaan will take off, which hopefully will be telecast live,' smiled Ramesh M, a student of the school.

A team of science teachers at Delhi Public School at its North Campus at Yelahanka, about 15 km from the city centre, is preparing a special presentation about the moon mission to be delivered at the morning assembly two days before the Chandrayaan liftoff from Sriharikota.

'The mission to the moon is special for all Indians as scientists have worked hard on the project. In order to make the students aware of the entire mission, a group of science faculty is preparing a special presentation for the students ahead of the launch,' said principal Sneh Preet Seal.

If on one hand school-goers are getting their facts correct about the moon and its mission, science students from colleges, among them a few aspiring scientists in India's IT hub, feel that the major milestone in the history of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will provide a new direction to space research in India.

'As an Indian I feel proud that the hard work of the scientists will soon bear fruit. The successful launch of the mission to the moon will usher in new understanding about the entire solar system, as formation and evolution of the moon are central to the understanding of our solar system. I wish all the best to the mission,' said Seema Hussain, a physics student in Bishop Cotton Women's Christian College. She aspires to become an astrophysicist..

Srinand Swamy, another student, echoed the view.

'October 22 will be a historic day for India,' he said. 'With the mission to the moon India will be at par with the US and Russia in terms of work done in the field of space research. Although I have to read a lot to know more about the nitty-gritty of the mission moon, I still feel the Chandrayaan project will further India's space research activities.'

Arun P, a student of mechanical engineering from the Bangalore College of Engineering and Technology at Hosur Road, around 12 km east of city centre, said the lunar mission would definitely help understand the moon and its features better.

'I am sure the endeavour of the scientists will result in upgrading India's technological know-how and open up opportunity for planetary research to the scientist fraternity of the country,' said Arun.
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by manoba »

Somewhat neutral tone about Chandrayaan-I from ESA.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=043KLT0zoHY

But, still no word of Indian generosity for giving their instruments free ride.
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by sanjaykumar »

Good video. This is a significant mission wrt to the science packages. It aims to add fundamentally to the sum of human knowledge.

Rather than generosity, collaboration would be a better term.
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by Avinash R »

Moon mission launch rehearsal today
http://www.hindu.com/2008/10/19/stories ... 790800.htm

52-hour countdown begins around 4 a.m. tomorrow

— Photo courtesy: ISRO
Image
COUNTDOWN ON MONDAY: The PSLV-C11, which will put Chandrayaan-1 into orbit, is being transported on a massive mobile pedestal from the Vehicle Assembly Building (in the background) to the launch pad at Sriharikota on Friday. The launch is scheduled for Wednesday and the formal 52-hour countdown will begin on Monday.

CHENNAI: Preparations for launching Chandrayaan-1 have peaked at Sriharikota with the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C11), married up with the spacecraft, having reached the launch pad from the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) on Friday. This one km “rath yatra” took two hours from the VAB to the launch pad, also called the umbilical tower.

“The fully assembled vehicle was moved to the umbilical tower. There will be a rehearsal of the launch sequence on Sunday,” said M. Annadurai, Project Director, Chandrayaan-1, from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre on Saturday. If the weather turns out to be fine, the PSLV-C11 will lift off from the second launch pad on October 22 at 6.20 a.m. and put Chandrayaan-1 in orbit.

It was a spectacular sight as the 44.4 metre tall PSLV-C11, which weighs 316 tonnes, standing on the mobile launch pedestal, ever so slowly rolled out of the VAB on a rail track towards the launch pad. The mobile pedestal itself, a massive platform made of steel, weighs 600 tonnes. Chandrayaan-1 weighs 1.3 tonnes. Extremely powerful engines, positioned below the mobile launch pedestal, slowly wheeled this 917 tonne colossus, from the sanctum sanctorum of the VAB towards the launch pad.

Mission Director George Koshy was on hand to supervise the manoeuvre.

Mr. Annadurai said that in the rehearsal, “we will do everything as if a launch is taking place.”

All electrical activities would get under way. In the Control Centre at the ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC), Bangalore, simulated data from the global network of ground stations would flow.

“It will be rehearsed in real time. After the exercise is over, we will make sure that everything is in place and the formal 52-hour countdown will start,” he said.

The countdown begins around 4 a.m. on October 20. Chandrayaan-1 carries 11 instruments – five from India and six from abroad. They will enable investigation of chemicals, minerals and possible presence of water on the moon. This may give clues on the origin of the moon.
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by SSridhar »

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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by kit »

http://www.moondaily.com/reports/UK_Moo ... f_999.html

UK Moon Camera Ready For Blast Off

C1XS was developed in conjunction with the Indian Space Research Organisation. It employs new technology to make a compact, lightweight, sensitive instrument that can measure the abundances of chemical elements in the lunar surface, by detecting the X-rays they absorb and re-emit. The spectrometer builds on a successful technology demonstration called D-CIXS, which was launched aboard the European Space Agency's (ESA) Smart-1 mission to the Moon.
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Chat/Interview with Dr.Kasturirangan (ISRO) @Monday 20th oct

Post by mohan »

Hi guys,

IBNlive is hosting a chat with Dr.Kasturirangan, who was the chairman of ISRO on Monday at 11:30 IST.
http://features.ibnlive.com/chat/dr-k-k ... n/188.html .

I think if you sign in with a handle and a mail Id, you can post questions during the chat. Thought it might interest some of the gurus here.

cheers,
Mohan
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by SSridhar »

Latest weather forecast
The scheduled launch of the Indian Space Research Organisation’s Chandrayaan-1 lunar mission on October 22 could see the northeast monsoon engaging itself into top gear. The east-west shear zone of monsoon turbulence would have been established by then with a ‘rain generator’ system forecast to spring up along the Kerala coast as well.
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by rakall »

Last night there was a report on NDTV by Vishnu & Pallav on Chandrayaan & India's future space plans icnluding the manned mission.. It was a tremendous report.. Great piece of work, but a case of bad telecast timing -- was telecast at midnight; I was only able to watch it 'by chance'.

VISHNU - can you please post the timings, if there is a repeat telecast.. Or upload the video for the jingos.

Some salient points of the report:

1. All the details of Chandrayaan; which nowadays every channel is repeating..

2. The report carried some visulas of the design drawings that ISRO prepared for the manned mission; One could see the design of the vehicle as planned for the manned mission, the design of how the "crew vehicle/Orbitor vehicle" is mounted on top of the launch vehicle..

3. There was a brief visual of a scaled-down version of the re-entry vehicle -- thermocouple mounting going on the heatshield tiles, before the hypersonic windtunnel test; A brief visual of the re-entry vehicle in actual wind-tunnel test being subjected to hypersonic flow..

4. Then came a HUGE BONUS.. the SilicaPhenolic heat shield tile - which is 2cm thick was tested by NDTV science editor Pallav.. What they did was -- heat the silica phenolic tile with the flame from a oxyacetylene torch on one side.. that is a temp of 1400-1500deg on one side of the 2cm thick tile.. Pallav was able to touch the otherside of the tile very comfortably with bare hands.. The demonstration of the tile was simple "Sooooooooooooperrr".!!

It was a nice report.. NDTV reporters were able to get deep access and managed to telecast some diamond pieces of info, just sliding across the screen for fractions of seconds each.. Absolutely wonderful.. Dr.KasturiRangan remarked that in 7-8years the manned mission should be ready to takeoff (ofcourse, if the funding pipeline from GoI remains free flowing).

if there is a repeat telecast -- it is a report everyone must see (Esp. Arun)
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by Rahul M »

Pallav was able to touch the otherside of the tile very comfortably with bare hands.. The demonstration of the tile was simple "Sooooooooooooperrr".!!
I thought I was the only one watching it ! it was mind blowing !
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by SSridhar »

Coundown has begun
. . .there was a minor glitch initially which was soon rectified
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by sgopal »

Rahul M wrote:
Pallav was able to touch the otherside of the tile very comfortably with bare hands.. The demonstration of the tile was simple "Sooooooooooooperrr".!!
I thought I was the only one watching it ! it was mind blowing !
Glimpses of this report is available on the NDTV website.
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by vina »

Hmm.. Some folks from my family are going to Sriharikota for the Chandrayan launch. I guess the last chance for him to witness a major milestone launch in an "official" capacity before retiring. How lucky. seriously envy them. The last time I visited was the SLV-3 back in those days ( I think the very first one , was that the one that fell into the sea after the 1st stage?) , I got to see that from less than 15 ft on the launch pad , 2 days before launch !.

Evidently, now that India is all hoity toity and "comfy", there is a posh /direct A/C Volvo bus service between Bangalore and Sriharikota! . No more the dreary drive on govt buses in the searing heat from Chennai to Sriharikota or the train up to Sulurpet and putting down your feet in Shar in the melting tar and the sahara like heat in summer. You can arrive in airconditioned comfort on air suspension :mrgreen: :mrgreen: . Not the same thing and pipe wrench touch and feel of the old days I am sure.
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by Prasad »

Vina,
following on that, does ISRO let people watch the launch from SHAR? I mean this could be a great opp for school students especially, to watch SLVs roar off into the sky. Or even the general public? I know its a high security installation and have witnessed the security there first hand. Got to get to the launch pad too, no slv in place though :)
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by SSridhar »

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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by SSridhar »

Use of composites in Chandrayaan-I
Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft, carrying 11 scientific instruments, weighs about 1400 kg at the time of its launch and is shaped like a cuboid with a solar panel projecting from one of its sides.

The state-of-the-art subsystems of the spacecraft, some of them miniaturised, facilitate the safe and efficient functioning of its 11 scientific instruments, according to the Indian Space Research Organisation.

The spacecraft structure has been built mainly using composites and aluminium honeycomb material. The thermal subsystem consisting of paints, tapes, multi layer insulation blanket, optical solar reflectors, heat pipes, heaters and temperature controllers, ensures the proper functioning of the spacecraft by keeping its temperature within acceptable limits.

The mechanisms subsystem of Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft takes care of the deployment of its solar panel and the steering of the dual gimballed antenna.

The spacecraft is powered by a single solar panel generating a maximum of 700 W.A 36 Ampere-Hour (AH) Lithium ion battery supplies power when the solar panel is not illuminated by the sun.

The Telemetry, Tracking and Command subsystem of Chandrayaan-1 working in S-band takes care of radioing the detailed spacecraft health information, facilitating the knowledge about spacecraft's position in space and allows the reception and execution of commands coming from earth by the spacecraft.

Sun and star sensors as well as gyroscopes provide the orientation reference for spacecraft in space.
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by SSridhar »

Chandrayaan-I telemetry
Besides, the spacecraft receives, modifies and retransmits radio waves sent by ground antennas in a precise way. This plays a crucial role in knowing its position and orbit at a particular instant of time. All these happen at 'S-band' frequencies in the microwave region of the electromagnetic spectrum.

Additionally, as it orbits the Moon, the spacecraft sends valuable imagery and other scientific information to earth through X-band (at a higher frequency compared to S-band), which also lies in the microwave region.

But, such information is transmitted through radio at a very low power of a few Watts. Thus, radio signals carrying that precious information become extremely feeble by the time they travel 400,000 km from the moon and reach the earth.

The ground segment of Chandrayaan-1 performs the crucial task of receiving the radio signals sent by the spacecraft. It also transmits the radio commands to be sent to the spacecraft during different phases of its mission. Besides, it processes and safe keeps the scientific information sent by the spacecraft.

ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC) had a lead role in establishing the ground segment facility of Chandrayaan-1 along with ISRO Satellite Centre (ISAC) and Space Applications Centre (SAC).

The ground segment of Chandrayaan-1 consists of Indian Deep Spacer Network (IDSN), Spacecraft Control Centre (SCC) and Indian Space Science Data Centre (ISSDC).

The IDSN performs the important task of receiving the radio signals transmitted by the spacecraft that become incredibly feeble by the time they reach the earth. Besides, it can send commands to the spacecraft at a power level of up to 20 kilowatts.

IDSN consists of two large parabolic antennas, one with 18m and the other 32m diameter at Byalalu, situated at a distance of about 35 km from Bangalore. Of these, the 32m antenna with its 'seven mirror beam waveguide system' is indigenously designed, developed, built, installed, tested and qualified.

The 18m antenna can support Chandrayaan-1 mission, but the 32m antenna can support Chandrayaan-1 and any spacecraft mission further deep into space.

During the initial phase of the mission, besides these two antennas, other ground stations of ISTRAC Network at Lucknow, Sriharikota, Bangalore, Thiruvananthapuram, Port Blair, Mauritius, Brunei, Biak (Indonesia) and Bearslake (Russia) as well as external network stations at Goldstone, Applied Physics Laboratory in Maryland, Hawaii (all three in USA), Brazil and Russia support the mission.
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by vsudhir »

India counts down to first lunar mission

Comparisions with the more advanced space programs of cheen and Japan in a 'Asian space race context' have begun in right earnst. Sample this:
India still has a long way to go to catch up with China which, together with the United States, Russia and the European Space Agency, is already well-established in the commercial launch sector.

Chinese officials have spoken of a manned mission to the moon in the future, after following the United States and the former Soviet Union last month by carrying out a space walk, although a more immediate goal is the establishment of an orbiting space lab.

Beijing's long-term ambition is to develop a fully-fledged space station by 2020 to rival the International Space Station, a joint project involving the United States, Russia, Japan, Canada and a clutch of European countries.
And
Japan has also been boosting its space programme and has set a goal of sending an astronaut to the moon by 2020.

Japan's first lunar probe, Kaguya, was successfully launched in September last year, releasing two mini-satellites which will be used to study the gravity fields of the moon among other projects.

As well as the commercial ramifications, the development of a space race in Asia has security implications, with the potential for developing military applications such as intelligence gathering and space-based weapons.

Earlier this year, Japan scrapped a decades-old ban on the military use of space, hoping to remove any legal obstacles to building more advanced spy satellites.
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by Arun_S »

rakall wrote:Last night there was a report on NDTV by Vishnu & Pallav on Chandrayaan & India's future space plans icnluding the manned mission.. It was a tremendous report.. Great piece of work, but a case of bad telecast timing -- was telecast at midnight; I was only able to watch it 'by chance'.

VISHNU - can you please post the timings, if there is a repeat telecast.. Or upload the video for the jingos.

Some salient points of the report:

1. All the details of Chandrayaan; which nowadays every channel is repeating..

2. The report carried some visulas of the design drawings that ISRO prepared for the manned mission; One could see the design of the vehicle as planned for the manned mission, the design of how the "crew vehicle/Orbitor vehicle" is mounted on top of the launch vehicle..

3. There was a brief visual of a scaled-down version of the re-entry vehicle -- thermocouple mounting going on the heatshield tiles, before the hypersonic windtunnel test; A brief visual of the re-entry vehicle in actual wind-tunnel test being subjected to hypersonic flow..

4. Then came a HUGE BONUS.. the SilicaPhenolic heat shield tile - which is 2cm thick was tested by NDTV science editor Pallav.. What they did was -- heat the silica phenolic tile with the flame from a oxyacetylene torch on one side.. that is a temp of 1400-1500deg on one side of the 2cm thick tile.. Pallav was able to touch the otherside of the tile very comfortably with bare hands.. The demonstration of the tile was simple "Sooooooooooooperrr".!!

It was a nice report.. NDTV reporters were able to get deep access and managed to telecast some diamond pieces of info, just sliding across the screen for fractions of seconds each.. Absolutely wonderful.. Dr.KasturiRangan remarked that in 7-8years the manned mission should be ready to takeoff (ofcourse, if the funding pipeline from GoI remains free flowing).

if there is a repeat telecast -- it is a report everyone must see (Esp. Arun)
Thanks rakall, but I do not have access to NDTV in the land of the Asur. May I request some one to try record that and upload the recording. Few High resolution frame grabs will be also valuable.

Sorry but I am short leash with work thus less time now days.
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by hnair »

Two good pics of the PSLV

On the way from VAB to pad. (probably taken from atop VAB)
In the pad at night

One thing that I find a bit disturbing is this rather large mass of people (it is there in the night picture of the vehicle above) around a big solid rocket booster, while it is being transported. A CAB/Avro type casualty list is unthinkable.
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by Arun_S »

vina wrote:Hmm.. Some folks from my family are going to Sriharikota for the Chandrayan launch. I guess the last chance for him to witness a major milestone launch in an "official" capacity before retiring. How lucky. seriously envy them. The last time I visited was the SLV-3 back in those days ( I think the very first one , was that the one that fell into the sea after the 1st stage?) , I got to see that from less than 15 ft on the launch pad , 2 days before launch !.

Evidently, now that India is all hoity toity and "comfy", there is a posh /direct A/C Volvo bus service between Bangalore and Sriharikota! . No more the dreary drive on govt buses in the searing heat from Chennai to Sriharikota or the train up to Sulurpet and putting down your feet in Shar in the melting tar and the sahara like heat in summer. You can arrive in airconditioned comfort on air suspension :mrgreen: :mrgreen: . Not the same thing and pipe wrench touch and feel of the old days I am sure.
Vina: Your are specially blessed for the privilege to witness that historical milestone. Can you ferret a high resolution picture of SLV-3 for BR?
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by Arun_S »

hnair wrote:Two good pics of the PSLV

On the way from VAB to pad. (probably taken from atop VAB)
I guess you mean photo taken from atop Umbilical Tower (UT).
One thing that I find a bit disturbing is this rather large mass of people (it is there in the night picture of the vehicle above) around a big solid rocket booster, while it is being transported. A CAB/Avro type casualty list is unthinkable.
All I can say that is the thrill of being in the "Baraat"(Marriage party) is more intoxicating then "Yam". At a personal level I will take my chances and enjoy the thrills of life. :twisted:
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by hnair »

Arun_S wrote:
I guess you mean photo taken from atop Umbilical Tower (UT).
I thought the road/tracks to the launch tower leads away from the VAB? So wont the UT in this case be the grey tower with the yellow crane on top?
All I can say that is the thrill of being in the "Baraat"(Marriage party) is more intoxicating then "Yam". At a personal level I will take my chances and enjoy the thrills of life. :twisted:
Indeed true, I was envious of those folks who were on that train pulling the fat lady through the casaurina groves@Wheeler Island. Lucky devils - it is like standing next to Columbus for a second time in history :evil:

But here, I am thinking about the situation from a "father of the bride" perspective. minivans at a safe distance from the capable but sensitive bahu could improve the chances of the highly admired and appreciated caterers/cooks. :)
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by Arun_S »

hnair wrote:
Arun_S wrote:
I guess you mean photo taken from atop Umbilical Tower (UT).
I thought the road/tracks to the launch tower leads away from the VAB? So wont the UT in this case be the grey tower with the yellow crane on top?
My bad, you are correct. I click on few of the urls and disassociated your comments with this one:
http://www.isro.gov.in/pslv-c11/photos/ ... ad-VAB.jpg
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by Angre »

ISRO will be broadcasting the launch via a webacst on 22nd Oct 2008 0550 - 0650 Hrs(IST).
Use this for local time conversion.
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by prao »

For just a fraction of a second, I thought there were a couple of garlands atop the PSLV. :lol: Then I realized they were probably a couple of the umbilicals strapped down.

http://www.isro.org/pslv-c11/photos/ful ... m-VABt.jpg
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by vdutta »

i dont mind if they offer "phool mala" to chanda mama :D
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by SSridhar »

Meanwhile, weather situation

Rains have been battering Chennai, especially since last evening. I expect the situation to be the same around Sriharikota.
A preparatory cyclonic circulation has sprung up over southwest Bay of Bengal ahead of a likely ‘low’ expected to materialise over the same region during the next two days.

India Meteorological Department (IMD) has warned of isolated heavy rain over Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Kerala during this period. Rain or thundershowers are likely to occur at many places over Rayalaseema and Lakshadweep and at a few places over south coastal Andhra Pradesh, south interior Karnataka and costal Karnataka.

What should keep the launch programme of the Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) Chandrayaan-1 lunar mission at Sriharikota relatively in tact is the ‘draining’ effect on easterly flows from a much stronger weather system in the southwest Arabian Sea.

A chunk of the Bay flows would in this way be directed across the peninsula, leaving the basin just to the north relatively calm. But a ‘low’ is there for the asking, and has to be contended with. Rains as such may not pose a problem but shearing winds, lightning and convective clouds possibly could, meteorologists said.
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by SSridhar »

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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by Nitesh »

http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/00 ... 211323.htm

India's first moon mission is world's 68th

Bangalore (IANS): Chandrayaan-1, that lifts off Wednesday morning from Sriharikota, is India's first and the world's 68th mission to the moon, the earth's closest celestial body which has fascinated children, scientists and poets alike.

{lsquo}{lsquo}Through the ages, the moon, our closest celestial body, has aroused curiosity in our mind, far more than any other objects in the sky,{rsquo}{rsquo} says the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on its maiden moon mission.

The world's first moon mission was by the then Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) on Jan 2, 1959, followed two months later by the US on March 3.

Between them, the two countries have sent 62 missions to probe the moon with the US stealing a march over the then cold war rival USSR by landing a man on the moon on July 20, 1969.

Japan broke the monopoly of the two superpowers on Jan 24, 1990 by sending its spacecraft Hiten to orbit the moon. The European Space Agency launched its probe in September 2003. China sent its spacecraft Chang-e last year.

The first hard landing on the moon was on Sep 12, 1959 by Soviet Union's Luna 2.

The first photos from the moon were taken by Oct 4, 1959 from the Soviet spacecraft Luna 3.

On Jan 26, 1962, the US Ranger 3 missed the Moon by 36,793 km.

The Soviet Union's Luna 6 did worse on June 8, 1965 missing the moon by 160,000 km.

Luna 9 made up for it on Jan 31, 1966 by becoming the first spacecraft to soft land on the moon.

The Indian mission to the moon was proposed at a meeting of the Indian Academy of Sciences in 1999.

Then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee announced the project was on course in his Independence Day speech on Aug 15, 2003.

The Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft is cuboid in shape, weighs 1,304 kg at launch and 590 kg at lunar orbit. It will carry 11 payloads, including six from abroad.

A canted single-sided solar array will generate required power for the spacecraft during its two-year mission. The solar array generates 700 watts of peak power. During eclipse the spacecraft will be powered by Lithium ion (Li-Ion) batteries.

The spacecraft employs an X-band, 0.7-metre diameter parabolic antenna for payload data transmission.

The Telemetry, Tracking & Command (TTC) communication is in S-band frequency and scientific payload data transmission in X-band frequency.

The spacecraft has three Solid State Recorders (SSRs) to record data from various payloads.

SSR-1 will store science payload data and has capability of storing 32 GB data.

The 8 GB SSR-2 will store science payload data along with spacecraft attitude information, satellite house keeping and other auxiliary data.

The third SSR with 10 GB SSR is for storing M3 (Moon Mineralogy Mapper) payload data.

On the ground, Chandrayaan-1 will be tracked by the Deep Space Station (DSN), Spacecraft Control Centre (SCC) and Indian Space Science Data Centre (ISSDC).

The spacecraft will blast off on an upgraded version of the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, built first in the early 1990s by ISRO.

PSLV is ISRO's workhorse launch vehicle. The upgraded version, PSLV-C11, has a liftoff weight of 316 tonnes.

Chandrayaan-1 costs Rs.3.86 billion (about $76 million): Rs.530 million (about $11 million) for Payload development, Rs.830 million (about $17 million) for Spacecraft Bus,

Rs.1 billion ($20 million) for Deep Space Network, Rs.1 billion ($20 million) for PSLV launch vehicle, and Rs.500 million ($10 million) for scientific data centre, external network support and programme management expenses.
Tanaji
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by Tanaji »

What is a decent writeup on Chandrayaan

India Moon probe ready for launch

is ruined by the obligatory
But the Indian government's space efforts have not been welcomed by all.

Some critics regard the space programme as a waste of resources in a country where millions still lack basic services.
at the end. But then there is no lack of Prafool Bidwai's on our side.
SSridhar
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by SSridhar »

Critics questions and ISRO's answers

Who are these nameless & faceless critics ?
Critics have questioned India's Chandrayaan-1 unmanned moon mission, pointing to explorations done by other countries in the past.

They say the venture is expensive, "wasting resources" and objectives are nothing but "reinventing the wheel".

Officials of the Bangalore-headquartered space agency strongly disagree with the reasons.

ISRO said though dozens of manned and unmanned spacecraft have explored the moon, this does not mean that every important aspect of the moon is known to humans or fully understood by them. On the contrary, there are many secrets, which the moon is yet to reveal.

These concern the origin and evolution of the moon, very detailed understanding of the mineralogy of the moon, abundance of Helium-3, said to be a relatively clean fuel for future nuclear fusion reactors, and what appears to be the presence of water ice in the permanently shadowed regions of the moon's polar areas.

"Thus, from the point of view of human intellectual quest as well as in the context of the future of humanity, exploration of the moon is very important," ISRO officials say.

In the past few years, there has been a renaissance with regard to the lunar exploration.

According to ISRO, many countries and international space agencies, including the European Space Agency (ESA), Japan, China, the US and Russia have undertaken or in the process of undertaking unmanned exploratory missions to moon.

These missions intend to seek answers to some of the fundamental questions that concern the moon. "India's Chandrayaan-1 is an integral part of that renewed interest of the international scientific community about the moon."

The cost of Chandrayaan-1 mission is Rs 386 crore, including Rs 100 crore for the establishment of Indian Deep Space Network (IDSN) at Byalalu near here, which performs the important task of receiving radio signals by the lunar spacecraft that are incredibly feeble by the time they reach the earth. IDSN would be used for future deep space missions also.

"The cost (Rs 386 crore) is less than ten per cent of ISRO's annual budget," said ISRO spokesperson S Satish, dismissing suggestions that it's an expensive project.

ISRO officials say the Chandrayaan-1 mission would significantly build on India's technological capability to undertake inter-planetary missions in the coming years. The mission would reflect ISRO's strong capability, raise India's stature internationally and help New Delhi catch up in the race for moon, they said.
kit
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by kit »

An Indian Radarsat on the dark side of the moon for Early warning BMD 8)
SandeepA
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by SandeepA »

What is the total Haj subsidy and what is the percentage of Muslim faithful seeking personal blessings with the tax-payer's money at Kaaba? We will need these kind of statistics to seal the mouths of the nay-sayers who will invariably try to overwhelm our conscience thru the English media once Chandrayaan takes off.
SSridhar
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by SSridhar »

Countdown proceeding smoothly
With the final countdown progressing without any hitch on Tuesday, India's maiden unmanned moon mission--Chandrayaan-I-- is all set to lift off on Wednesday to launch a two-year space odyssey that will catapult the country into an exclusive club of moon-faring nations.

The weather conditions over the Sriharikota spaceport were being closely monitored and officials said there is no chance of the launch being postponed unless a cylonic threat emerged, as the polar rocket that will put the spacecraft into lunar orbit was being fuelled.

"Everything is going in order. We are ready to launch on the dot," a space official said, as hundreds of scientists went through the 49-hour countdown drill with precision.

The 1,380 kg spacecraft would be put into orbit by India's home-grown rocket PSLV-C11 which is due to blast off at at 6.20 am on Wednesday from the second launch pad at Satish Dhawan Space Centre Associate Director(SDSC).

The work on filling of propellant for the first stage of the polar launch vehicle had been completed and the second stage filling would be over tonight, SDSC Associate Director Dr M Y S Prasad told PTI here, 80 km. north of Chennai.

"The countdown, which started at 5.22 am yesterday, is progressing smoothly and the propellant filling of PS-2 (first stage) has been completed," he said adding a total of about 43 tonnes of propellant would be filled.

Asked about weather conditions in this space port town, which is witnessing isolated rains, Prasad said the rains would not affect the launch. "The rain does not matter as the spacecraft is fully rain proof. Even if it is drenched, the launch would take place as per schedule."

However, the launch might have to be rescheduled if there was cyclonic weather conditions, he added.
p_saggu
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by p_saggu »

http://www.isro.org/pslv%2Dc11/photos/t ... hstage.jpg

Hey,
This is like the SUM of a MIRV Agni with space for the MIRV warheads all around it. Although this is the 4th stage of the PSLV-C11, but GOI releasing this picture means something.
prao
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by prao »

UK Moon Camera Ready for Blast Off

Here's a generous statement from the article ...

"....C1XS [the X-ray camera - Prao] was developed in conjunction with the Indian Space Research Organisation. ..."

http://www.moondaily.com/reports/UK_Moo ... f_999.html
juvva
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by juvva »

Count down clock at: http://www.ibnlive.com/
sanjaychoudhry
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Re: Chandrayan-1 mission discussion

Post by sanjaychoudhry »

Who are these nameless & faceless critics ?
All Jholawala commies who have got Western awards, the same people who call call-centre workers "cyber coolies."
Locked