ISRO’s ambitious Chandrayaan-2 spacecraft has accomplished yet another feat today by moving another step closer to the Moon by successfully completing the first round of the de-orbiting manoeuvre that was closely monitored by the Indian space centre. The procedure began at 0850 hrs IST as proposed, by adopting an onboard propulsion system. The duration of this historic process was 4 seconds.
“The first de-orbit maneuver for #VikramLander of #Chandrayaan2 spacecraft was performed successfully today (September 03, 2019) at 0850 hrs IST.”
-@ISRO
The orbit of the Vikram Lander measures 104 x 128 km. Chandrayaan-2 Orbiter continues to orbit the Moon in the same way as that of the Orbiter and Lander and both are reported to be in a healthy state. The next de-orbiting manoeuvre will happen on September 04, 2019 between 0330 – 0430 hrs IST.
Christened as ‘Baahubali’, the GSLV Mk-III rocket which carries the orbiter and lander measures 43 meters tall where the Orbiter and Vikram Lander are racked one on top of each other, while the Pragyan Rover is placed inside the lander.
The Chandrayaan-2 mission is touted to examine an unexplored part of the Moon, in particular, the “South Polar region” or “Aitken Basin” and will be performing some topographical studies and mineralogical analyses alongside other experiments on the surface of the Moon to obtain a wider perception of the Moon’s origin and its evolution over the years.
If triumphant, this mission will make India the fourth country after Russia, the United States and China to soft-land on the Moon. The Chandrayaan-2 spacecraft is expected to land on the Moon’s surface on September 7, 2019.
Further Reading: http://wordpress-695532-2297746.cloudwaysapps.com/black-hole-emits-strange-flashes-baffling-astronomers/ http://wordpress-695532-2297746.cloudwaysapps.com/do-we-live-in-a-multiverse/