MOON SHOT IS JUST THE BEGINNING INDIA HARNESSES SPACE TECHNOLOGY FOR THE BENEFIT OF ALL
India’s Moon Shot is well on its way to the moon, and if all goes well, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) hopes to soft-land a robotic craft on the lunar surface in early September 2019. Dr. Kailasavadivoo Sivan, the Chairman of ISRO has described the Chandrayaan-2 (Moon Vehicle) as the ‘most complex space mission ever undertaken by India.”
On the hot and humid afternoon of July 22, 2019, at India’s rocket port, the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota exactly at 2:43 p.m. India’s most powerful rocket the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark3 nicknamed the ‘Baahubali’ lifted off into the monsoon clouds carrying India’s Chandrayaan-2 satellite into space. In less than 17 minutes the 640-tonne rocket, equivalent to the weight of 1.5 Jumbo Jets, which stands as high as fifteen-story building at 44-meter length completed its mission by putting the Chandrayaan-2 satellite in a “better than expected orbit” said Sivan.
Speaking about the successful launch of Chandrayaa -2 in spite of encountering “technical snag” and a rapid come back, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, “if you ask me what the two greatest lessons I have received from Chandrayaan-2, I shall say they are faith and fearlessness.”
PM Modi is a known space enthusiast who knows how to deploy space technology for effective governance of the 1.3 billion Indians. He further added, “the second important lesson is – never lose hope in the face of stumbling blocks or obstacles. The way our scientists rectified technical issues in record time, burning the midnight oil, is in itself an exemplary, unparalleled task. The
world watched the ‘‘Tapasya,’ the awesome perseverance of our scientists. We should also feel proud of the fact that despite hindrances, there is no change in the arrival time [on the moon] … many are amazed at that. We have to face temporary setbacks in life… but always rememberthe capacity to overcome them resides within us.”
Chandrayaan-2 is India’s second moon shot the first was launched in 2008 named Chandrayaan-1, and it was an orbiter were `India was the captain and several countries like USA, UK, the European Space Agency were players as India lofted their instruments all the way to the moon free of cost.’ Chandrayaan-1 made global history when this under $100 million mission made the startling discovery of the presence of water molecules on the parched lunar surface. This renewed twenty-first century `back to the moon’ effort in a way was spurred by Chandrayaan-1, and now the USA seeks to send astronauts back to the moon in the next few years.
Chandrayaan-2 according to Sivan “is a three in one mission’ where there is an orbiter that will go around the moon, a lander named Vikram that will attempt a soft landing near the South Pole of the moon and small six-wheeled moon rover called Pragyaan. Modi says, “Chandrayaan-2 is Indian to the core. It is thoroughly Indian in heart and spirit. It is completely a `swadeshi,’ homegrown mission. This mission has proved beyond doubt, once again, that when it comes to attempting an endeavor in the new age, cutting edge areas, with innovative zeal, our scientists are second to none. They are the best… they are world-class.” India has sent 13 indigenously made scientific instruments that will analyze homegrown surface, map the topography search for water and measure moonquakes among other things, this time also India is carrying a small instrument for the American space agency NASA on board the Vikram Lander.
The Indian moon rover is powered by artificial intelligence and is expected to do its long march on the moon surface for about half a kilometer in its nominal life of 14 days. ISRO hopes to soft-land on the lunar surface on Sept. 7, 2019, and if it succeeds India will become the fourth country after the USA, Russia, and China to have the capability to soft-land on another planetary body.
India is no doubt betting big on space technology, as PM Modi says “I fervently hope that the Chandrayaan-2 mission will inspire our youth towards science & innovation. After all, science is the path to progress.”