The far side images of moon captured by Chandrayaan 1 is released on ISRO’s website. Click the thumbnail images below to download it on your computer.
Indian Space Research Organisation scientists are now developing next generation hi-tech Launch Vehicles or Rockets for heavy satellites. This project will cut the cost of launching satellites by more than half the present.
This year, we will see series of tests and research works on GSLV Mark III. GSLV Mark III is said to completed by 2010-2011. The present GSLV can put only 2.2 tonnes of payloads into space. But, Mark III can put upto 4 tonnes of payloads into space. This will help Antrix Corporation (ISRO’s commercial wing) to offer the cheapest space launches in the world.
Mr. K Radhakrishnan, Director of Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, said that ISRO is going to test the solid booster, followed by liquid stage and cryogenic engine will be tested this year. He also said that they are planning to conduct a test flight by 2010 or 2011. Radhakrishnan said ISRO will be able to pack more transponders in one space flight. “This makes it a cost effective solution and will give us a niche in the world in launching four tonne satellites,” he said.
GSLV is also planning to apply Mark III for human space missions. But, as far as the mission in 2015 is concerned, normal GSLV will be used which will put 2 Indians into space. But, GSLV Mark III has the capacity to put 3 astronauts at the same mission.
Two of the 10 remaining scientific instruments onboard India’s first unmanned lunar mission Chandrayaan-1 will be activated in mid-December for conducting experiments.
The sub-kiloelectronvolt (keV) atom reflecting analyser (SARA) and the high-energy x-ray spectrometer (HEX) are scheduled to be activated in mid-December as they need favourable condition from the sun angle. The remaining eight payloads have been energised and are functioning well.
Of the 11 payloads, the moon impact probe (MIP) was successfully lowered onto the lunar surface Nov 14 with excellent results. The other eight instruments are – mini synthetic aperture radar (MiniSAR), moon mineralogy mapper (M3), radiation dose monitor (RADOM), terrain mapping camera (TMC), hyper-spectral imager (HySI), lunar laser ranging instrument (LLRI), imaging x-ray spectrometer (C1XS) and smart near infrared spectrometer (SIR-2).
The MIP camera took about 3,000 images during its 25-minute descent. Some of the images include the ridge of the Shackleton crater and a vivid picture of the field where the probe crash-landed, thus confirming the execution was precise and at the designated place. They are a valuable catch.
The data, received from the mother spacecraft at the deep space network (DSN) at Byalalu, about 40 km from Bangalore, is being caliberated and studied by ISRO scientists.The data is so voluminous that it will take three months to analyse by our experts. The third instrument – the c-band altimeter gave the trajectory of the descent and confirmed whatever we have done was on target. The MIP experiment is unique as the Chinese and Japanese lunar missions did not have such a one.
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India’s space scientists have developed hydrogen fuel cells to power an automobile bus by leveraging their know-how of the homegrown cryogenic technology for rockets.
The two-year effort has yielded positive results and the scientists are now readying for the fuel cells to be fitted into a bus.
“That’s not exactly the cryogenic technology… (It’s) liquid hydrogen handling and that’s where we have some expertise. So, we have finalised the design”, Chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation, G Madhavan Nair said.
According to Honorary Adviser of ISRO V Gnana Gandhi leading the technical team in this project, ISRO and Tata Motors entered into an MoU in 2006 to design and develop an automobile bus using hydrogen as a fuel through fuel cell route.
Nair said: “Tatas are taking the responsibility for the locomotive part of it, and hydrogen handling system also.
First protomodel has been assembled. Results are good. May be next year, it should be on the road”.
Gandhi said: “We are planning to integrate the system in the first quarter of next year (January-March 2009), and vehicle integration in the second quarter”.
He said the hydrogen cells are a spin-off of the cryogenic technology that ISRO has been developing for the last few years.
For Chandrayaan 1 Gallery, Click here
For Chandrayaan 1 Payloads Gallery, Click here
For Pictures taken by Moon Impact Probe, Click here
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