Chandrayaan 1 successfully enters Lunar Orbit, Makes History!

Chandrayaan-1, India’s first unmanned spacecraft mission to moon, entered lunar orbit today (November 8, 2008). This is the first time that an Indian built spacecraft has broken away from the Earth’s gravitational field and reached the moon. This historic event occurred following the firing of Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft’s liquid engine at 16:51 IST for a duration of 817 seconds. The highly complex ‘lunar orbit insertion manoeuvre’ was performed from Chandrayaan-1 Spacecraft Control Centre of ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network at Bangalore.

Indian Deep Space Network (IDSN) at Byalalu supported the crucial task of transmitting commands and continuously monitoring this vital event with two dish antennas, one measuring 18 m and the other 32 m.

Chandrayaan-1’s liquid engine was fired when the spacecraft passed at a distance of about 500 km from the moon to reduce its velocity to enable lunar gravity to capture it into an orbit around the moon. The spacecraft is now orbiting the moon in an elliptical orbit that passes over the polar regions of the moon. The nearest point of this orbit (periselene) lies at a distance of about 504 km from the moon’s surface while the farthest point (aposelene) lies at about 7502 km. Chandrayaan-1 takes about 11 hours to go round the moon once in this orbit.

The performance of all the systems onboard Chandrayaan-1 is normal. In the coming days, the height of Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft’s orbit around the moon will be carefully reduced in steps to achieve a final polar orbit of about 100 km height from the moon’s surface. Following this, the Moon Impact Probe (MIP) of the spacecraft will be released to hit the lunar surface. Later, the other scientific instruments will be turned ON sequentially leading to the normal phase of the mission.

It may be recalled that Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft was launched on October 22, 2008 by PSLV-C11 from India’s spaceport at Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR, Sriharikota. As intended, PSLV placed the spacecraft in a highly oval shaped orbit with a perigee (nearest point to Earth) of 255 km and an apogee (farthest point to Earth) of 22,860 km. In the past two weeks, the liquid engine of Chandrayaan-1 has been successfully fired five times at opportune moments to increase the apogee height, first to 37,900 km, then to 74,715 km, later to 164,600 km, after that to 267,000 km and finally to 380,000km, as planned. During this period, the Terrain Mapping Camera (TMC), one of the eleven payloads (scientific instruments) of the spacecraft, was successfully operated twice to take the pictures, first of the Earth, and then moon.

With today’s successful manoeuvre, India becomes the fifth country to send a spacecraft to Moon. The other countries, which have sent spacecraft to Moon, are the United States, former Soviet Union, Japan and China. Besides, the European Space Agency (ESA), a consortium of 17 countries, has also sent a spacecraft to moon.

Chandrayaan moved more closer to moon!

(A ISRO Press Release)

The fourth orbit raising manoeuvre of Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft was carried out today (October 29, 2008) morning at 07:38 am IST. During this manoeuvre, the spacecraft’s 440 Newton liquid engine was fired for about three minutes. With this, Chandrayaan-1 entered into a more elliptical orbit whose apogee (farthest point to Earth) lies at 267,000 km (two lakh sixty seven thousand km) while the perigee (nearest point to Earth) lies at 465 km.

Thus, Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft’s present orbit extends more than half the way to moon. In this orbit, the spacecraft takes about six days to go round the Earth once.

The health of the spacecraft is being continuously monitored from the Spacecraft Control Centre at ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC) in Bangalore with support from Indian Deep Space Network antennas at Byalalu. All systems onboard the spacecraft are performing normally. One more orbit raising manoeuvre is scheduled to send the spacecraft to the vicinity of the moon at a distance of about 384,000 km from the Earth.

First Leg, Very Perfect, What’s next?

After a historic launch and a successful injection into the transfer orbit, India’s first unmanned moon mission Chandrayaan-1 is ready for the next big task.Chandrayaan-1 has to get into the orbit around the moon where it will revolve for two years before returning back to the earth.

The moon spacecraft, was put into transfer orbit around the earth by the Polar Launch Vehicle PSLV-C11 after it blasted off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre.

The 1,380 kg Chandrayaan-1, carrying 11 payloads, was released into a Transfer Orbit 18.2 minutes after the PSLV-C11 blasted off.

After a series of procedures over the next two weeks, the spacecraft would reach its desired Lunar orbit and placed at a height of 100 km from the Lunar surface, marking the operational phase of the mission which would put India in the elite lunar club.

Earlier, at the end of the 49-hour countdown, the 44.4 meter tall four-stage PSLV-11 lifted off from the second launch pad into a cloudy sky.

This is the 14th flight of ISRO’s workhorse PSLV, which had launched 29 satellites into a variety of orbits since 1993, and 13th successive one in a row.

Chandrayaan-1 is carrying 11 payloads, five entirely designed and developed in India, three from European Space Agency, one from Bulgaria and two from US, which would explore the Moon over the next two years. 

Indian Space Research Organisation Chairman G Madhavan Nair described the successful launch as a historic moment in India’s space programme.

“The launch was perfect and precise. The satellite has been placed in the earth orbit. With this, we have completed the first leg of the mission and it will take 15 days to reach the lunar orbit,” Nair announced in the mission control centre.

Chandrayaan 1 Countdown to begin on October 20

Chandrayaan 1 is all set bring glory for India. Chandrayaan 1 is the first unmanned lunar mission undertaken by the largest democracy in the world “India”. The countdown for the launch of Chandrayaan 1 is to be started on Monday, October 20 in the early morning. The mission is scheduled for launch on October 22 at 06:20 am. The rocket was moved into it’s launchpad last evening. Mr. Prasad, Associate Director of SHAR, said that the preparatory activities and checking the parameters for the countdown is under progress. He added that they are satisfactory. Once this steps are over, they are scheduled to start the countdown.

During the countdown process, 42 tonnes of propellant will be filled. There are 11 scientific payloads or instruments involved in this mission. And those weights 1,380 kilograms at it’s time of launch. 

The spacecraft is shaped like a cuboid with a solar panel projecting from one of its sides. The state-of-the-art sub-systems of the spacecraft facilitates safe and efficient functioning of its 11 payloads.

It is powered by a single solar panel generating a maximum power of 700W. A 36 Ampere-Hour (AH) Lithium ion battery supplies power when the solar panel is not illuminated by the sun. “To make Chandrayaan-1 escape from orbiting the earth and to travel towards the moon, its Liquid Apogee Motor (LAM) is used,” an official said, adding, “Liquid propellants needed for LAM as well as thrusters are stored onboard the spacecraft.

” The craft’s dual gimballed antenna will transmit scientific data gathered by its 11 payloads to earth”, officials added. 

Chandrayaan 1 : Quick Glimpses

Chandrayaan 1 is scheduled for launch on October 22 at 6.20 am. The countdown begins 52 hours before the launch. The aims of this mission are : (1) Realise the goal of harnessing the science payloads, lunar craft and the launch vehicle with suitable ground support systems, including deep space network station. (2) Realise integration and testing, launching and achieving lunar polar orbit of about 1000 km, in orbit operation of experiements, communication/telecommand, telemetry data reception, quick look data and archival for scientific utilisation by identified group of scientists.

CHANDRAYAAN 1 SPACE CRAFT : Chandrayaan 1 uses a 3-axis stablised space craft, with two star sensors, gyros and four reaction wheels. The power generation is through a single-sided solar array that gives the required power during all phases of the mission. This deployable solar array, consisting of a single panel, generates 700 watts of peak power. During an eclipse, the space craft will be powered by lithium ion batteries. The space craft employs X-Band 0.7 m diameter parabolic antenna for payload data transmission. The antenna employs a mechanism to track the Earth station when the space craft is in lunar orbit. The space craft uses a bipro-pellant integrated propulsion system to reach lunar orbit as well as orbit and altitude maintenance while orbiting the moon.

The propulsion system carries required propellant for a mission life of two years with adequate margin.

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