Mangalyaan: ISRO's Mars Orbiter Mission

SaiK · Post by **SaiK** » 26 Sep 2014 04:37

real beautiful people are not dumb, they are the nation's special effects.
dumb people become beautiful to those who consider only visual effects.

Amber G. · Post by **Amber G.** » 26 Sep 2014 04:39

Folks - If possible can we cut down on all the stories about negative stories in this thread.. May be some one can start a new thread where all such stories, and rebuttal can go.
(A few comments here and there are okay but if majority of all the posts becomes off topic, it will drive away serious posters who like to read/post on topic posts)

(Forgive me, but I think that much more annoying than all the bigoted articles/comments are virtual nonstop OT (to put it mildly) comments/posts here in brf.. where we are bad-mouthing our own leaders, (even present/ex prime-ministers or top leaders), top-notch institutions and their students just because one wants to.)

As they say अति सर्वत्र वर्जयेत् .. can we be a little more reasonable? .. Keep, at least this thread focused. There are plenty of other threads where one can make all the comments about other things..

TIA.

member_22733 · Post by **member_22733** » 26 Sep 2014 04:43

Amber G,

I thought of the same earlier. The only reason I keep posting anything negative here is that there would be many eyeballs on this thread, and it is important for those people to also see through the hog-wash being perpetrated. After working with IITians, they are fair game to me

sorry about that.

I do see your point, and I will stop posting non-technical political, and racist convulsions of intellectual epilepsy from the west.

KLNMurthy · Post by **KLNMurthy** » 26 Sep 2014 05:04

SagarAg wrote:
hecky wrote: Martian atmosphere as seen from an altitude of 8449 km. Image taken using Mars Color Camera on-board ISRO's Mars Orbiter Mission
Mind = Blown. Shivers of pride down the whole body

Saffronization of Mars.

Amber G. · Post by **Amber G.** » 26 Sep 2014 05:05

I think it will be cool to have a story about mangalyaan and Ganges Chasma .

Ganges Chasma as you may or may not know is an ancient river bed type object on Mars.

If you look at map of the mars, look at 8.0°S and 48.1°W

( It is named after the River Ganga and is thought to have formed through a series of catastrophic discharges of water in ancient times.

Considering the inclination of MOM's orbit of 150, this feature will be available to be photographed..

Here is a picture of the feature.

..

Or please look at the article, for example:
http://themis.asu.edu/feature/1
***
Let us make a push so some of the features along this chasma are named after some famous ghats
along Ganga river. (isro should be able to do this)
***
(I predict here that few days from now, there will be stories, how NaMo, who won from a city on the bank of Ganga -- planned all that

)

Kashi · Post by **Kashi** » 26 Sep 2014 05:12

SaiK wrote:some cool pics here [not our mom's ]
http://news.discovery.com/space/indias- ... 140924.htm

how could this have possibly happened?

It looks like Rahu or Ketu al set to swallow the sun or the moon!!

SaiK · Post by **SaiK** » 26 Sep 2014 05:14

Mars Color Camera (MCC)
operates in visible range (0.4 to 0.7 µm) and uses
RGB bayer pattern. Its IGFOV varies from 19.5 m to
4 km. The detector array has 2048x2048 elements on
a pixel pitch of 5.5µ. The sensor is driven by a
custom built electronics designed around the detector
[1]. MCC (Fig. 1) is among the five science payloads
onboard MOM. It has 16 different modes of
exposures, aimed at imaging the Mars surface with
moderate scientific objectives.

http://www.hou.usra.edu/meetings/lpsc2014/pdf/2449.pdf

rehashing FYI

KLNMurthy · Post by **KLNMurthy** » 26 Sep 2014 05:16

Rony wrote:why are "beautiful" people dumb ? Kareena's dumb reply on Mangalyaan

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srStQAp7mfg

India's beautiful people are working at ISRO. We have seen their pix in this thread. Who is this Kareena person hain ji?

Amber G. · Post by **Amber G.** » 26 Sep 2014 05:23

Kashi wrote:
SaiK wrote:some cool pics here [not our mom's ]

It looks like Rahu or Ketu al set to swallow the sun or the moon!!

Saik, Kashi, I think I was wrong earlier when I attributed this picture to the wrong feature on Mars..

It looks like (check out to make sure I am right)
Athabasca

KJo · Post by **KJo** » 26 Sep 2014 05:35

Obama: Aaj mere paas US presidency hai, ObamaCare hai, 'war on terror' hai. Kya hai tumhare paas?
Modi: Mere paas MOM hai.

SaiK · Post by **SaiK** » 26 Sep 2014 05:36

there are videos here
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/MRO/m ... 920-6.html

these kind of valleys are really interesting
http://www.nasa.gov/images/content/1899 ... ll-516.jpg

it looks like it was dug by hardcore indic sdre men for pipe laying activities.

chaanakya · Post by **chaanakya** » 26 Sep 2014 07:18

Just 2% of Isro’s engineers are from IITs, NITs

COIMBATORE/ NAGPUR: Isro may be making great strides in space, but when it comes to attracting graduates from premier institutes like IIT, it has a long way to go. Details gathered through an RTI application shows that only 2% employees of Indian Space Research Institute (Isro) are graduates from IITs or NITs.

With satellite launches and interplanetary exploration increasingly becoming as commercial as scientific, Isro will need products of premier institutes. "But this is not a trend that affects only Isro," says V Adimurthy, senior advisor of interplanetary mission at Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Thiruvananthapuram. Other sectors like roadways and railways too don't attract them," says the IIT-Kanpur alumnus.

Moreover, Isro's centralized recruitment system doesn't differentiate between an IIT graduate and one from another engineering college. "We look for strength in fundamentals, wherever the person is from. It is essential to have people from different institutions."

Isro chairman K Radhakrishnan sees a silver lining in Isro's Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IISST), Thiruvananthapuram. Since its inauguration in 2007, the institute has been getting toppers as applicants. "We have been getting some brilliant students who I am sure would go on to become big scientists in Isro," says Radhakrishnan.

But given the trickle of IITians and NITians, academics feel Isro should collaborate with educational institutions to initiate and attract the best of talent from other campuses.

"Collaborative research with colleges other than IITs and NITs have deepened engagement with students and made students aspire for a nationalist career at ISRO," says Vaidhyasubramaniam S, dean, planning and development, SASTRA University. Pramod Prasad, a 2008 electronics and communication graduate from SASTRA was a part of Mars Orbiter Mission.

Academics agree that most of the IITians and NITians look for fat-paying jobs in software and technology companies. "Going abroad and earning high are the priorities," says a senior academician of a deemed university. But this could change, feels former Isro chairman U R Rao.

"Achievements like the Mars Orbiter Mission would attract graduates to Isro. You need passion to work in Isro. That's why people who join the organisation seldom leave it for another job.

SSSalvi · Post by **SSSalvi** » 26 Sep 2014 07:53

Some observations about first MOM image.

http://indiaspaceactivity.blogspot.com/ ... oying.html

SaiK · Post by **SaiK** » 26 Sep 2014 08:01

one can't go by % basis like our famous project managers do. what they do is important.. also note that projects off-shored to IITs should be taken into account. e.g. after russkies pulled out of moon rover, IIT Kanpur took over rover designs for C2.

Santosh · Post by **Santosh** » 26 Sep 2014 08:22

vishant chaudhary wrote:http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/441 ... ion-in-aid
Comments are killer

I am glad that Indians are so well read. And they are not afraid to share a piece of their mind. More power to Indics where ever they are.

member_22733 · Post by **member_22733** » 26 Sep 2014 08:26

SSSalvi wrote:Some observations about first MOM image.

http://indiaspaceactivity.blogspot.com/ ... oying.html

S^3. Its ok, they were excited and understandably so. Have you seen the first pics from the Ruskies of their Mars/Venus missions? It was a grainy, shabby image. We dont have to look perfect every time. When the post-proc chain is debugged and ready, there will be a new set of images, with much better clarity. This was more of a shout of joy, let them have their moment

shiv · Post by **shiv** » 26 Sep 2014 09:49

sudhan wrote:News from Germany

Translation: "The impossible made possible"

When the best and brainiest are taken away, only the losers remain behind?

No. I don't mean that seriously but this photograph is a sociological story.

All around me in Bangalore and in India I find that young smart people who join private companies for high salaries face unique hurdles. They do get paid well but they work very long hours and after a time women get the short straw because marriage and pregnancy are considered bad for the company and women get shafted using some excuse. That is where PSUs like ISRO, BEL, HAL etc (and banks and colleges) come in. We have women who are able to balance a home life with a work life because the government cannot discriminate against women the way private companies do. it is illegal of course - but private companies do that and women often opt out rather than fighting because marriage and family and parents are considered important in our culture. Of course if women opted not to have marriage or children none of this would be an issue. But this is the wrong thread for that.

SSSalvi · Post by **SSSalvi** » 26 Sep 2014 10:14

^^^

Staying 2 3 hours after office and having meetings on weekends is not uncommon for women staff in all ISRO centres.

ISRO does not work in babu way.

govardhanks · Post by **govardhanks** » 26 Sep 2014 11:29

I wanted to ask so many questions based on Images showing three layers of mars planet atomsphere, but felt like I might be wrong.

Isn't it that there are clouds in mars (upper most layer adjust brightness you will see white layer)?

Comparing images of MAVEN, Hydrogen and oxygen wala, Oxygen seems to be trapped in the form of dioxides with carbon, calcium, Magnesium, Silica and other earthly minerals and hydrogen about to say bye bye to planet. Now that exactly not a favorable condition for formation of water(H2O), or is it like Mars is telling us there is still time left for formation of water slowly.

May be we should start looking at polar ice caps, collect air samples trapped in ice, which could give clue of Martian atmosphere for years before?

I am also of opinion that there might be something really different below few feet of Mars crust.. Interesting days ahead, ISRO might tell something which has never been confirmed on Mars. I am just waiting.

Between , this is a request, We don't need prove someone what we are on International new paper website comments section. It might be good to just know what different countries feels about MOM ,specially regarding UK and Oz don't be emotional. Sorry for raising this topic, if any further comment we can discuss it in http://forums.bharat-rakshak.com/viewto ... start=1640

shiv · Post by **shiv** » 26 Sep 2014 11:51

SSSalvi wrote:^^^

Staying 2 3 hours after office and having meetings on weekends is not uncommon for women staff in all ISRO centres.

ISRO does not work in babu way.

Of course they work more hours. And for lower pay than pvt sector. But pvt sector is more likely to terminate or obstruct a woman's career by not giving maternity and post partum leave. When we rant about pvt sector on the forum this aspect is rarely mentioned because all tech jobs are male dominated. Much of the great work that goes on can be credited to women. But our society (read employers) must be ready to make the sacrifices required to create woman friendly workplaces. Currently the Public sector in India does that better than pvt sector.

Raja Bose · Post by **Raja Bose** » 26 Sep 2014 12:02

V_Raman wrote:
Raja Bose wrote: Can someone create a Tumblr page or FB post titled: " The moms behind MOM"?
Done on my timeline!

Post a screen grab here after suitably anonymizing it.

hnair · Post by **hnair** » 26 Sep 2014 12:09

This is one photo that need to be posted here:

Shree Nambi Narayanan breaking a coconut at the Pazhavangadi Ganapathi Temple here in Trivandrum, after MOM sailed into orbit.

(The politician who gave a "target of opportunity" for them dark-glassed whiteys and shafted this gentleman's life, is currently the Chief Minister of Kerala. A dear friend of mine is writing a biography of Shree Nambi Narayanan, upon his request. Only one request to both of them: do not spare the ones who targeted India's space program. The CM (and the malayalam newspaper that propped him) should be called out for what he did against an entire country)

chaanakya · Post by **chaanakya** » 26 Sep 2014 12:16

vina wrote:
Why CNN-IBN is showing MMS. We don't want to see him , hear him with coal tarred face. What a disgrace that pathetic chap is.
Well, that "pathetic chap" was the one who wanted the mission, okayed the plans, financed it and saw it launched. NYT is right. Modi has absolutely nothing to do with this other than the speech he gave today. That is fine . He is after all the elected PM of the day.

But let us not miss the wood for the trees and acknowledge the contributions made and who created this mission in the first place. Modi could have been more gracious and acknowledged MMS in is speech,when he spoke about Vajpayee and Chandrayaan.

SSSalvi wrote: Thanks Vina for bringing out what many silent watchers had in their hearts.
Achhe din in this mission is due to jaldi sanction of paisa at that time.

We can't forget that Mars mission was executed in such a short time .. not possible without a faith in your space team that they will execute it. No chances for rethinking .. window is so short .. else 2016.

It is not MMS but could have been anybody who gave a green signal in such a short time. He needs to be appreciated .. not with that 'Pathetic Chap' name. Can you do anything without budget sanction?

ssalvi saheb. Full credit to MMS for sanctioning Mangalyaan mission for a paltry sum of Rs 650 crores ( also releasing it to them in advance without waiting for vouchers). We all know how difficult it was during those ten dark years unless it happened to be some scams related files like coalG or even 4G of ISRO. We now know that the same bureaucracy work can faster than light, you need intention to first develop India. We are yet to assess how much damage all of this was intended to cause to the Country.See, nutwarlal says MMS was appointing ministers after asking unkil. You have worked in the system so surely you will know that congi mechanism was designed to keep India down else we could have a financially autonomous Scientific institutions without depending on moolahs/sanctions from GOI and dreaming of Mangalyaan for something like Rs 10000 crores, rather than scamming in Lakhs of crores of rupees. Just see the obscene rush to give credit to congis on TV to believe that it was a truly jarring and pathetic moment in such an inspiring achievement.

I don't take pride in wearing bleeding hearts on my sleeves for congis of UPA era.Sri Narasimha Rao was of different make altogether.

chaanakya · Post by **chaanakya** » 26 Sep 2014 12:18

hnair wrote:This is one photo that need to be posted here:

Shree Nambi Narayanan breaking a coconut at the Pazhavangadi Ganapathi Temple here in Trivandrum, after MOM sailed into orbit.

(The politician who gave a "target of opportunity" for them dark-glassed whiteys and shafted this gentleman's life, is currently the Chief Minister of Kerala. A dear friend of mine is writing a biography of Shree Nambi Narayanan, upon his request. Only one request to both of them: do not spare the ones who targeted India's space program. The CM (and the malayalam newspaper that propped him) should be called out for what he did against an entire country)

I hope GOI awards him Padma awards for his contribution and also use his brains for liquid jet propulsion engines as mentor or national professor in the subject.

hnair · Post by **hnair** » 26 Sep 2014 12:25

Chanakya, a friendly advice - that previous post is not needed. Space and nuclear programs always had good funds, whomever was in power. Defence, Infra et al are a bit different and the last 10 years was abysmal

OT, but regarding awards et al. I think the greatest award for Shree Naryanan would be to ensure a robust counter-intel plan is there for VSSC as it is for BARC.

P Chitkara · Post by **P Chitkara** » 26 Sep 2014 12:26

Ardeshir wrote:Just imagine, if this happened in September 2013 instead of 2014, we could have witnessed the birth of Rajiv Gandhi Lal Grah.

shiv · Post by **shiv** » 26 Sep 2014 14:12

pandyan wrote: 2014 Working Mother 100 Best Companies (US ranking)

US law enforcement is very strict in this regard. In India - the laws are there and government enterprises follow them, but implementation in the private sector is lax. There is almost no way a woman can prove that she was discriminated against if she is passed over from promotion (or not hired) based on trumped up reasons. And any lady who tries to fight the system will be bashed down.

What this amounts to is the cliché that women will do the same jobs as men for lower salaries because in India the "lower salaries" are associated with government jobs that are more woman friendly. I could include the banking sector here. That is why we are getting used to seeing female faces in Indian defence successes and that includes missiles, electronics and in non mil sectors like ISRO.

merlin · Post by **merlin** » 26 Sep 2014 14:42

hnair wrote:Chanakya, a friendly advice - that previous post is not needed. Space and nuclear programs always had good funds, whomever was in power. Defence, Infra et al are a bit different and the last 10 years was abysmal

OT, but regarding awards et al. I think the greatest award for Shree Naryanan would be to ensure a robust counter-intel plan is there for VSSC as it is for BARC.

somewhere there is a link that will make you eat your words regarding MMS and the nuclear program. Enough said.

chaanakya · Post by **chaanakya** » 26 Sep 2014 14:49

Friendly advice is well taken. However I am not so convinced. MMS was doing his bit if you remember Antrix - Devas Deal. And cash for vote was what?

member_28108 · Post by **member_28108** » 26 Sep 2014 14:58

Thanks prasannasimha ji. So an image like this can be created by collating the images taken by @MarsOrbiter

They collect swaths of images and collate them. For eg many of the curiosity landscapes and mars pictures have been made by collating a huge amount of pictures. You can see an example of collation done to take the suns family portrait.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Family_Portrait_(Voyager)

This is a collated image made from the flyby of Mars Express

hnair · Post by **hnair** » 26 Sep 2014 15:09

chaanakya, thanks for the understanding. There are way too many threads in a complex nation like India and funding is some ways to choke a thread. Funding did not choke weaponization nor large-diameter rockets from flying. Anyways, OT

merlin, I am not going to eat my words nor anyone's. Disregarding your advice.

member_28108 · Post by **member_28108** » 26 Sep 2014 15:11

SSSalvi wrote:Some observations about first MOM image.

http://indiaspaceactivity.blogspot.com/ ... oying.html

Did they say that it was a post processed image ? Why crib about it when they have not made such an assertion or claim ?
If you see their second post they candidly said that "they are getting better at it" - operating the camera and the second image is indeed stunning.
For non scientists the one thing that people want is a visual image and they provided it.Were we also (on this list) not clamoring for an image ? if you rotate the image and see carefully you can ascertain craters(the bubble like appearance is a standard optical illusion). It gives a sense that the orbiter is functioning and not just a electronic claim by the scientists.

raj-senthil · Post by **raj-senthil** » 26 Sep 2014 15:12

What's next for Mangalyaan? ISRO boss tells us
http://www.rediff.com/news/interview/wh ... 140926.htm

What is the life of Mangalyaan?

It would be about six months if you look at it, but might also go for a longer period than expected. We have around 40 kg of propellant in the spacecraft.

member_28108 · Post by **member_28108** » 26 Sep 2014 15:14

SSSalvi wrote:^^^

Staying 2 3 hours after office and having meetings on weekends is not uncommon for women staff in all ISRO centres.

ISRO does not work in babu way.

In many centers like ADA and ISRO men and women work beyond their duty hours. One of my colleagues classmate left ISRO as he said he couldn't manage the requirements during launch and subsequent data monitoring. There are a lot of dedicated people in these units.Of course there will be some politicos and lazy people but they have to be also managed.

member_28108 · Post by **member_28108** » 26 Sep 2014 19:03

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/432 ... -life.html

Isro contemplates extending MOM's life
Prashanth G N, Sep 25, 2014, DHNS:
The first image of Mars captured by Mars Orbiter Spacecraft from a height of 7,300 km, with 376 m spatial resolution. (Below) Martian atmosphere as seen from an altitude of 8,449 km. Image taken using Mars Colour Camera on-board Isro's Mars Orbiter Mission. PICS: Reuters/ISRO
After placing a satellite in the Martian orbit, scientists at the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) are now working on what to do with the fuel that the spacecraft has saved.

There are two options. The first is to use the fuel to extend the life of the spacecraft beyond six months to one year or more. The second option is to finetune the orbiter’s trajectory to obtain more data.

The decision on utilisation of fuel will be taken in the next few days with scientists waiting for the orbiter to revolve around Mars at least twice so that there is adequate data to be examined. Each revolution will take 3.2 earth days.

Some US missions have extended the life of spacecraft, while some others were terminated or let to die. The decision will be taken depending on the objectives of Isro.

The scientists will map the distance of the spacecraft from Mars and try to get it as close as possible to the planet by working on the orbiter’s trajectory. Monitoring of the spacecraft’s movements and health is going on, which will determine how it will be handled.

Isro is expecting more pictures from the spacecraft. The arrival of pictures will take time due to the distance between Mars and the earth. These pictures will help Isro to take a good look of the surface of Mars and craters among various other facets.

In the next few days four other instruments will be switched on. The fifth instrument, the camera, is already on. There is no hierarchy among the instruments because each one is measuring a different facet of the planet.

However, the instrument which is looking for methane is very important as the gas will indicate presence of life that may have existed.

The Mars Orbiter Mission is carrying five scientific payloads to observe Martian surface, atmosphere and exosphere extending up to 80,000 km for a detailed understanding of the evolution of that planet, especially the related geological and the possible biogenic processes. These payloads consist of a camera, two spectrometers, a radiometer and a photometer. Together they weigh around 15 kg.

Scientists will monitor the instruments to assess whether their voltage and temperature is fine and functioning as per the plan. Isro received 20 proposals for placing instruments on the spacecraft from different countries, but only five were finally selected by a committee headed by former Isro chief U R Rao.

The remaining proposals will be taken up in subsequent missions or on missions conducted by other countries. The events related to Mars Orbit Insertion are progressing satisfactorily.

The spacecraft is now circling Mars in an orbit whose nearest point to the planet (periapsis) is at 421.7 km and farthest point (apoapsis) is at 76,993.6 km. The inclination of the orbit with respect to the equatorial plane of Mars is 150 degrees.

Amber G. · Post by **Amber G.** » 26 Sep 2014 19:19

raj-senthil wrote:What's next for Mangalyaan? ISRO boss tells us
http://www.rediff.com/news/interview/wh ... 140926.htm

What is the life of Mangalyaan?

It would be about six months if you look at it, but might also go for a longer period than expected. We have around 40 kg of propellant in the spacecraft.

Thanks for this on-topic post.

Yours truly also (for example here) expressed similar views here..

The fuel is needed only for adjusting things are antenas and stuff.. but even after all the fuel run out, MOM will be in the orbit for a VERY long time..of the order of MILLIONS of years.

BTW, first orbiter to Mars, put in orbit around early 70's (I remember it very well, as one of our professor was heavily involved and we got to know much more than press reported) is still orbiting Mars. Not to mention, some of the early satellites (sent in late 1950's), are still orbiting Earth... (long after all fuel and power is gone).

Interestingly, looking at first pictures taken by MOM reminded me when the first craft to Mars (mariner 9 ?) disappointed and confused many with its first pictures. It got nothing but just red/brown fog. It was days later, when people realized that it happened that the probe arrived when there was a big dust storm all over and one can not see anything. Scientists (including that prof) know now that it was a dust storm, but for days it was a big mystery.

What are the chances that the first Mars probe will arrive in the middle of big dust storm?

Apparently these storms are not that uncommon in certain part of year (of mars)... Last season was around April this year... good for MOM)

Amber G. · Post by **Amber G.** » 26 Sep 2014 19:31

prasannasimha wrote:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/432 ... -life.html

...
There are two options. The first is to use the fuel to extend the life of the spacecraft beyond six months to one year or more. The second option is to finetune the orbiter’s trajectory to obtain more data.

The decision on utilisation of fuel will be taken in the next few days with scientists waiting for the orbiter to revolve around Mars at least twice so that there is adequate data to be examined. Each revolution will take 3.2 earth days.

Some US missions have extended the life of spacecraft, while some others were terminated or let to die. The decision will be taken depending on the objectives of Isro.

The scientists will map the distance of the spacecraft from Mars and try to get it as close as possible to the planet by working on the orbiter’s trajectory. Monitoring of the spacecraft’s movements and health is going on, which will determine how it will be handled.

...\

Interesting

... Something very very close to what I have posted here before!

BTW, some rough calculations ..

- At present orbit, if no fuel is used, considering drag effects etc,.. MOM's is not going to fall on Mars in any near future. (The simple model I used, gives the life time greater than of millions of years).

- Amount of fuel needed for closer orbit etc -lot of things are possible ... all depends on what isro wants. (Remember MOM weighs (I mean it's mass -- it's weight is zero

) almost half a ton less than before MOI)

Comer · Post by **Comer** » 26 Sep 2014 19:43

What are the benefits of orbiting for a longer time or do a controlled harakiri on the Martian soil? If the experiments onboard can handle it

chetak · Post by **chetak** » 26 Sep 2014 19:47

saravana wrote:What are the benefits of orbiting for a longer time or do a controlled harakiri on the Martian soil? If the experiments onboard can handle it

On board lithium battery and the solar panels will give out long before that if the orbit continues beyond several years

Comer · Post by **Comer** » 26 Sep 2014 20:02

What if they do it in 6 months?