Chandrayaan
Encyclopedia
Chandrayaan-1 was India's first unmanned lunar probe
. It was launched by the Indian Space Research Organisation
in October 2008, and operated until August 2009. The mission included a lunar orbiter and an impactor. India launched the spacecraft with a modified version of the PSLV, PSLV C11
on 22 October 2008 from Satish Dhawan Space Centre
, Sriharikota
, Nellore District
, Andhra Pradesh
, about 80 km north of Chennai
, at 06:22 IST
(00:52 UTC). Former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee
announced the project on course in his Independence Day speech on 15 August 2003. The mission was a major boost to India's space program, as India researched and developed its own technology in order to explore the Moon. The vehicle was successfully inserted into lunar orbit on 8 November 2008.
On 14 November 2008, the Moon Impact Probe
separated from the Chandrayaan orbiter at 20:06 and struck the south pole in a controlled manner, making India the fourth country to place its flag on the Moon. The probe impacted near Shackleton Crater
at 20:31 ejecting underground soil that could be analysed for the presence of lunar water ice.
The estimated cost for the project was 3.86 billion Indian rupees (US$90 million).
The remote sensing
lunar satellite had a mass of 1380 kilograms (3,042 lb) at launch and 675 kilograms (1,488 lb) in lunar orbit. It carried high resolution remote sensing equipment for visible, near infrared, and soft and hard X-ray
frequencies. Over a two-year period, it was intended to survey the lunar surface to produce a complete map of its chemical characteristics and three-dimensional topography. The polar regions are of special interest as they might contain ice. The lunar mission carries five ISRO payloads and six payloads from other space agencies including NASA
, ESA, and the Bulgarian Aerospace Agency
, which were carried free of cost.
After suffering from several technical issues including failure of the star sensors and poor thermal shielding, Chandrayaan stopped sending radio signals at 1:30 AM IST
on 29 August 2009 shortly after which, the ISRO officially declared the mission over. The main culprit is said to be the failure of onboard DC-DC Converter manufactured by mdipower USA . The converters failed to meet the radiation specifications for the intended mission time. Chandrayaan operated for 312 days as opposed to the intended two years but the mission achieved 95 percent of its planned objectives. Among its many achievements was the discovery of the widespread presence of water molecules in lunar soil.
Mass
Dimensions
Communications
Power
Propulsion
Navigation and control
using the ISRO's 44.4 metre tall four-stage PSLV launch rocket. Chandrayaan-1 was sent to the Moon in a series of orbit-increasing manoeuvres around the Earth over a period of 21 days as opposed to launching the craft on a direct trajectory to the Moon. At launch the spacecraft was inserted into geostationary transfer orbit
(GTO) with an apogee of 22,860 km and a perigee
of 255 km. The apogee was increased with a series of five orbit burns conducted over a period of 13 days after launch.
For the duration of the mission, ISRO's telemetry, tracking and command network (ISTRAC
) at Peenya
in Bangalore
, tracked and controlled Chandrayaan-1. Scientists from India, Europe, and the U.S. conducted a high-level review of Chandrayaan-1 on 29 January 2009 after the spacecraft completed its first 100 days in space.
The first orbit-raising manoeuvre of Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft was performed at 09:00 hrs IST on 23 October 2008 when the spacecraft’s 440 Newton Liquid Engine was fired for about 18 minutes by commanding the spacecraft from Spacecraft Control Centre (SCC) at ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC) at Peenya, Bangalore. With this Chandrayaan-1’s apogee was raised to 37,900 km, and its perigee to 305 km. In this orbit, Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft took about 11 hours to go around the Earth once.
Second orbit burn
The second orbit-raising manoeuvre of Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft was carried out on 25 October 2008 at 05:48 IST when the spacecraft’s engine was fired for about 16 minutes, raising its apogee to 74,715 km, and its perigee to 336 km, thus completing 20 percent of its journey. In this orbit, Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft took about twenty-five and a half hours to go round the Earth once. This is the first time an Indian spacecraft has gone beyond the 36,000 km high geostationary orbit and reached an altitude more than twice that height.
Third orbit burn
The third orbit raising manoeuvre was initiated on 26 October 2008 at 07:08 IST when the spacecraft’s engine was fired for about nine and a half minutes. With this its apogee was raised to 164,600 km, and the perigee to 348 km. In this orbit, Chandrayaan-1 took about 73 hours to go around the Earth once.
Fourth orbit burn
The fourth orbit-raising maneuver took place on 29 October 2008 at 07:38 IST when the spacecraft's engine was fired for about three minutes, raising its apogee to 267,000 km and the perigee to 465 km. This extended its orbit to a distance more than half the way to the Moon. In this orbit, the spacecraft took about six days to go around the Earth once.
Final orbit burn
The fifth and final orbit raising manoeuvre was carried out on 4 November 2008 04:56 am IST when the spacecraft’s engine was fired for about two and a half minutes resulting in Chandrayaan-1 entering the Lunar Transfer Trajectory
with an apogee of about 380,000 km.
(point farthest away from the Moon) and 504 km periselene,
(nearest to the Moon). The orbital period was estimated to be around 11 hours. With the successful completion of this operation, India became the sixth nation to put a vehicle in lunar orbit.
First orbit reduction
First Lunar Orbit Reduction Manoeuvre of Chandrayaan-1 was carried out successfully on 9 November 2008 at 20:03 IST. During this, the engine of the spacecraft was fired for about 57 seconds. This reduced the periselene from 504 km to 200 km while aposelene remained unchanged at 7,502 km. In this elliptical orbit, Chandrayaan-1 took about ten and a half hours to circle the Moon once.
Second orbit reduction
This manoeuvre, which resulted in steep decrease in Chandrayaan-1’s aposelene from 7,502 km to 255 km and its periselene from 200 km to 187 km, was carried out on 10 November 2008 at 21:58 IST. During this manoeuvre, the engine was fired for about 866 seconds (about fourteen and half minutes). Chandrayaan-1 took two hours and 16 minutes to go around the Moon once in this orbit.
Third orbit reduction
Third Lunar Orbit Reduction was carried out by firing the on board engine for 31 seconds on 11 November 2008 at 18:30 IST. This reduced the periselene from 187 km to 101 km, while the aposelene remained constant at 255 km. In this orbit Chandrayaan-1 took two hours and 9 minutes to go around the Moon once.
Final orbit
Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft was successfully placed into a mission-specific lunar polar orbit of 100 km above the lunar surface on 12 November 2008. In the final orbit reduction manoeuvre, Chandrayaan-1’s aposelene was reduced from 255 km to 100 km while the periselene was reduced from 101 km to 100 km. In this orbit, Chandrayaan-1 takes about two hours to go around the Moon once. Two of the 11 payloads – the Terrain Mapping Camera (TMC) and the Radiation Dose Monitor (RADOM) – have already been successfully switched on. The TMC successfully acquired images of both the Earth and the Moon.
(MIP) crash-landed
on the lunar surface on 14 November 2008, 15:01 UTC (20:31 Indian Standard Time
(IST)) near the crater Shackleton
at the south pole. The MIP was one of eleven scientific instruments (payloads) on board Chandrayaan-1.
The MIP separated from Chandrayaan at 100 km from lunar surface and began its nosedive at 14:36 UTC (20:06 IST). going into free fall for thirty minutes. As it fell, it kept sending information back to the mother satellite which, in turn, beamed the information back to Earth. The altimeter then also began recording measurements to prepare for a rover to land on the lunar surface during a second Moon mission - planned for 2012.
Following the successful deployment of the MIP, the other scientific instruments were turned on, starting the next phase of the mission.
After scientific analyses of the received data from the MIP, the Indian Space Research Organisation confirmed the presence of water in the lunar soil and published the finding in a press conference addressed by its then Chairman Sri. G. Madhavan Nair
.
(M3), a NASA instrument on board the orbiter. The presence of iron
was reiterated and changes in rock and mineral composition have been identified. The Oriental Basin region of the Moon was mapped, and it indicates abundance of iron-bearing minerals such as pyroxene
.
, the first mission that brought humans on the Moon.
at Byalalu near Bangalore, from where they were flashed to ISRO's Telemetry Tracking And Command Network (ISTRAC)
at Bangalore.
Some of these images have a resolution of down to 5 metres, providing a sharp and clear picture of the Moon's surface, while many images sent by some of the other missions had only a 100-metre resolution.
On 26 November, the indigenous Terrain Mapping Camera, which was first activated on 29 October 2008, acquired images of peaks and craters. This came as a surprise to ISRO officials because the Moon consists mostly of craters.
signatures of aluminium
, magnesium
and silicon
were picked up by the C1XS X-ray camera. The signals were picked up during a solar flare
that caused an X-ray fluorescence
phenomenon. The flare that caused the fluorescence was within the lowest C1XS sensitivity range.
s which enabled spacecraft operations, although some failures may have reduced the craft's lifetime. The second failure, detected on 16 May, was attributed to excessive radiation from the Sun.
was used to perform a bistatic radar
experiment to detect the presence of water ice on the lunar surface. In this experiment, Chandrayaan emanated RADAR pulses which, after reflection from the surface, were picked up by the receivers of both the Chandrayaan and the LRO. Both receivers, Mini-SAR in Chandrayaan and Mini-RF in LRO, were pointed at the Erlanger crater for four minutes during which the observations were made. In March 2010, it was reported that the Mini-Sar experiment on board the Chandrayaan-1 had discovered cold dark spots which are hypothesized to contain an estimated "at least 600 million metric tonnes" of water-ice held within northern polar craters.
A member of the science advisory board of Chandrayaan-1 said that it is difficult to ascertain reasons for the loss of contact. ISRO Chairman -Madhavan Nair- said that due to very high radiation, power-supply units controlling both the computer systems on board failed, snapping the communication connectivity. However, information released later showed that the power supply failed due to overheating.
The data collected from the mission have been disseminated to Indian scientists and also the partners from Europe and U.S.A. for analysis.
has confirmed the magma ocean hypothesis, meaning that the moon was once completely molten. "It proves beyond doubt the magma ocean hypothesis. There is no other way this massive rock type could be formed," said Carle Pieters, science manager at the NASA-supported spectroscopy facility at Brown University in the US.
The Terrain mapping camera on board Chandrayaan-1 , besides producing more than 70,000 three dimensional images, has recorded images of the landing site of US spacecraft Apollo 15
, rubbishing conspiracy theories that the US mission to land on the moon
four decades back was a hoax.
"TMC and HySI payloads of ISRO have covered about 70 per cent of the lunar surface, while M3 covered more than 95 per cent of the same and SIR-2 has provided high-resolution spectral data on the mineralogy of the moon", ISRO said.
Indian Space Research Organisation said interesting data on lunar polar areas was provided by Lunar Laser Ranging Instrument (LLRI) and High Energy X-ray Spectrometer (HEX) of ISRO as well as Miniature Synthetic Aperture Radar (Mini-SAR) of the USA.
LLRI covered both the lunar poles and additional lunar regions of interest, HEX made about 200 orbits over the lunar poles and Mini-SAR provided complete coverage of both North and South Polar Regions of the moon.
Another ESA payload - Chandrayaan-1 imaging X-ray Spectrometer (C1XS) - detected more than two dozen weak solar flares during the mission duration. The Bulgarian payload called Radiation Dose Monitor (RADOM) was activated on the day of the launch itself and worked until the mission's end.
ISRO said scientists from India and participating agencies expressed satisfaction on the excellent performance of Chandrayaan-1 mission as well as the high quality of data sent by the spacecraft.
They have started formulating science plans based on the data sets obtained from the mission. It is expected that in the next few months, interesting results about lunar topography, mineral and chemical contents of the moon and related aspects are expected to be published,ISRO said.
A Chandrayaan-1 moon mission payload has enabled scientists to study the interaction between the solar wind and a planetary body like moon without a magnetic field, a meeting convened by ISRO was told.
In its 10-month orbit around the moon, Chandrayaan-1’s X-ray Spectrometer (C1XS) has detected titanium, confirmed the presence of calcium, and gathered the most accurate measurements yet of magnesium, aluminium and iron on the lunar surface.
(M3) on Chandrayaan-1 has detected water on the moon. M3 detected absorption features near 2.8-3.0 µm on the surface of the Moon. For silicate bodies, such features are typically attributed to hydroxyl
- and/or water
-bearing materials. On the Moon, the feature is seen as a widely distributed absorption that appears strongest at cooler high latitudes and at several fresh feldspathic craters. The general lack of correlation of this feature in sunlit M3 data with neutron spectrometer H abundance data suggests that the formation and retention of OH and H2O is an ongoing surficial process. OH/H2O production processes may feed polar cold traps and make the lunar regolith a candidate source of volatiles for human exploration.
The Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3), an imaging spectrometer, was one of the 11 instruments on board Chandrayaan-I that came to a premature end on 29 August 2009. M3 was aimed at providing the first mineral map of the entire lunar surface.
Lunar scientists have for decades contended with the possibility of water repositories. They are now increasingly “confident that the decades-long debate is over,” a report says. “The moon, in fact, has water in all sorts of places; not just locked up in minerals, but scattered throughout the broken-up surface
, and, potentially, in blocks or sheets of ice at depth.” The results from the Chandrayaan mission are also “offering a wide array of watery signals.”
According to European Space Agency
(ESA) scientists, hydrogen nuclei from solar winds are absorbed by the lunar regolith (a loose collection of irregular dust grains making up the moon’s surface). An interaction between the hydrogen nuclei and oxygen present in the dust grains are expected to produce hydroxyls and water.
SARA, developed by the ESA and the Indian Space Research Organisation, was designed to study the moon’s surface composition and solar wind-surface interactions. Recently, another instrument on the Indian spacecraft, the Moon Mineralogy Mapper — an imaging spectrometer developed by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration — first found water molecules on the lunar surface.
SARA’s results also highlight a mystery: not every hydrogen nucleus is absorbed. One out of every five rebounds into space, combining to form an atom of hydrogen. “We didn’t expect to see this at all,” said Stas Barabash of the Swedish Institute of Space Physics, who is the European Principal Investigator for SARA.
Hydrogen shoots off at speeds of around 200 km per second and escapes without being deflected by the moon’s weak gravity, the team found.
This knowledge provides timely advice for scientists who are readying ESA’s BepiColombo
mission to mercury. The spacecraft will carry two instruments similar to SARA and may find that the innermost planet is reflecting more hydrogen than the moon because the solar wind is more concentrated closer to the sun.
(AIAA) has selected ISRO's Chandrayaan-1 mission as one of the recipients of its annual AIAA SPACE 2009 awards, which recognizes key contributions to space science
and technology
.
The International Lunar Exploration Working Group (ILEWG) chose the Chandrayaan-1 team for giving the International Cooperation award, M, Annadurai, project director, Chandrayaan-1.The Chandrayaan team of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) was chosen for the award for accommodation and tests of the most international lunar payload ever (from 20 countries consisting of India, the European Space Agency
representing 17 European countries, NASA
and Bulgaria
) and the successful launch of the probe on PSLV rocket on 22 October and the lunar insertion of the spacecraft carried out subsequently.
, "The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) hopes to land two motorised rovers
- one Russian and another Indian - on the Moon in 2013, as a part of its second Chandrayaan mission. The rover will be designed to move on wheels on the lunar surface, pick up samples of soil or rocks, do on-site chemical analysis and send the data to the mother-spacecraft Chandrayaan II, which will be orbiting above. Chandrayaan II will transmit the data to Earth."
. The interest lies in identifying lunar water on the surface that can be exploited in setting up a future lunar outpost
. The Mini-SAR, one of the U.S payloads on Chandrayaan, was used to determine the presence of water ice.
Exploration of the Moon
The physical exploration of the Moon began when Luna 2, a space probe launched by the Soviet Union, made an impact on the surface of the Moon on September 14, 1959. Prior to that the only available means of exploration had been observation. The invention of the optical telescope brought about the...
. It was launched by the Indian Space Research Organisation
Indian Space Research Organisation
The Indian Space Research Organisation is an independent Indian governmental agency established in 1969 for the research and development of vehicles and activities for the exploration of space within and outside of Earth’s atmosphere. Headquartered in Bangalore...
in October 2008, and operated until August 2009. The mission included a lunar orbiter and an impactor. India launched the spacecraft with a modified version of the PSLV, PSLV C11
Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle
The Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle , commonly known by its abbreviation PSLV, is an expendable launch system developed and operated by the Indian Space Research Organisation . It was developed to allow India to launch its Indian Remote Sensing satellites into sun synchronous orbits, a service that...
on 22 October 2008 from Satish Dhawan Space Centre
Satish Dhawan Space Centre
The Satish Dhawan Space Centre is the launch centre for the Indian Space Research Organisation . It is located in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh, India, north of Chennai in South India. It was originally called Sriharikota High Altitude Range , and was sometime known as Sriharikota Launching Range...
, Sriharikota
Sriharikota
Sriharikota is a barrier island off the coast of the southern state of Andhra Pradesh in India. It houses India's only satellite launch centre in the Satish Dhawan Space Centre and is used by the Indian Space Research Organisation to launch satellites using multi-stage rockets such as the Polar...
, Nellore District
Nellore district
Sri Amarajeevi Potti Sri Ramulu Nellore District is one of the 23 districts of Andhra Pradesh. Nellore is famous for high paddy field, and so it got its name from "Nelli". The population of the district was 2,966,082 of which 22.45% were urban as of 2011....
, Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
, about 80 km north of Chennai
Chennai
Chennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...
, at 06:22 IST
Indian Standard Time
Indian Standard Time is the time observed throughout India and Sri Lanka, with a time offset of UTC+05:30. India does not observe daylight saving time or other seasonal adjustments, although DST was used briefly during the Sino–Indian War of 1962 and the Indo–Pakistani Wars of 1965 and 1971...
(00:52 UTC). Former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Atal Bihari Vajpayee is an Indian statesman who served as the tenth Prime Minister of India three times – first for a brief term of 13 days in 1996, and then for two terms from 1998 to 2004. After his first brief period as Prime Minister in 1996, Vajpayee headed a coalition government from...
announced the project on course in his Independence Day speech on 15 August 2003. The mission was a major boost to India's space program, as India researched and developed its own technology in order to explore the Moon. The vehicle was successfully inserted into lunar orbit on 8 November 2008.
On 14 November 2008, the Moon Impact Probe
Moon Impact Probe
The Moon Impact Probe developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation , India's national space agency, was a lunar probe that was released by ISRO's Chandrayaan-1 lunar remote sensing orbiter which in turn was launched, on 22 October 2008, aboard a modified version of ISRO's Polar Satellite...
separated from the Chandrayaan orbiter at 20:06 and struck the south pole in a controlled manner, making India the fourth country to place its flag on the Moon. The probe impacted near Shackleton Crater
Shackleton (crater)
Shackleton is an impact crater that lies at the south pole of the Moon. The peaks along the crater's rim are exposed to almost continual sunlight, while the interior is perpetually in shadow. The low-temperature interior of this crater functions as a cold trap that may capture and freeze volatiles...
at 20:31 ejecting underground soil that could be analysed for the presence of lunar water ice.
The estimated cost for the project was 3.86 billion Indian rupees (US$90 million).
The remote sensing
Remote sensing
Remote sensing is the acquisition of information about an object or phenomenon, without making physical contact with the object. In modern usage, the term generally refers to the use of aerial sensor technologies to detect and classify objects on Earth by means of propagated signals Remote sensing...
lunar satellite had a mass of 1380 kilograms (3,042 lb) at launch and 675 kilograms (1,488 lb) in lunar orbit. It carried high resolution remote sensing equipment for visible, near infrared, and soft and hard X-ray
X-ray
X-radiation is a form of electromagnetic radiation. X-rays have a wavelength in the range of 0.01 to 10 nanometers, corresponding to frequencies in the range 30 petahertz to 30 exahertz and energies in the range 120 eV to 120 keV. They are shorter in wavelength than UV rays and longer than gamma...
frequencies. Over a two-year period, it was intended to survey the lunar surface to produce a complete map of its chemical characteristics and three-dimensional topography. The polar regions are of special interest as they might contain ice. The lunar mission carries five ISRO payloads and six payloads from other space agencies including NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
, ESA, and the Bulgarian Aerospace Agency
Bulgarian Aerospace Agency
Space research in Bulgaria is coordinated by the Inter-Department Commission for Space Research which is constituted from the deputy ministers of several ministries and representatives of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences . Co-chairman is the President of BAS...
, which were carried free of cost.
After suffering from several technical issues including failure of the star sensors and poor thermal shielding, Chandrayaan stopped sending radio signals at 1:30 AM IST
Indian Standard Time
Indian Standard Time is the time observed throughout India and Sri Lanka, with a time offset of UTC+05:30. India does not observe daylight saving time or other seasonal adjustments, although DST was used briefly during the Sino–Indian War of 1962 and the Indo–Pakistani Wars of 1965 and 1971...
on 29 August 2009 shortly after which, the ISRO officially declared the mission over. The main culprit is said to be the failure of onboard DC-DC Converter manufactured by mdipower USA . The converters failed to meet the radiation specifications for the intended mission time. Chandrayaan operated for 312 days as opposed to the intended two years but the mission achieved 95 percent of its planned objectives. Among its many achievements was the discovery of the widespread presence of water molecules in lunar soil.
Objectives
The mission had the following stated scientific objectives:- to design, develop, launch and orbit a spacecraft around the Moon using an Indian-made launch-vehicle
- to conduct scientific experiments using instruments on the spacecraft which would yield data:
- for the preparation of a three-dimensional atlas (with high spatial and altitude resolution of 5–10 m) of both the near and far sides of the Moon
- for chemical and mineralogical mapping of the entire lunar surface at high spatial resolution, mapping particularly the chemical elements magnesiumMagnesiumMagnesium is a chemical element with the symbol Mg, atomic number 12, and common oxidation number +2. It is an alkaline earth metal and the eighth most abundant element in the Earth's crust and ninth in the known universe as a whole...
, aluminiumAluminiumAluminium or aluminum is a silvery white member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al, and its atomic number is 13. It is not soluble in water under normal circumstances....
, siliconSiliconSilicon is a chemical element with the symbol Si and atomic number 14. A tetravalent metalloid, it is less reactive than its chemical analog carbon, the nonmetal directly above it in the periodic table, but more reactive than germanium, the metalloid directly below it in the table...
, calciumCalciumCalcium is the chemical element with the symbol Ca and atomic number 20. It has an atomic mass of 40.078 amu. Calcium is a soft gray alkaline earth metal, and is the fifth-most-abundant element by mass in the Earth's crust...
, ironIronIron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
, titaniumTitaniumTitanium is a chemical element with the symbol Ti and atomic number 22. It has a low density and is a strong, lustrous, corrosion-resistant transition metal with a silver color....
, radonRadonRadon is a chemical element with symbol Rn and atomic number 86. It is a radioactive, colorless, odorless, tasteless noble gas, occurring naturally as the decay product of uranium or thorium. Its most stable isotope, 222Rn, has a half-life of 3.8 days...
, uraniumUraniumUranium is a silvery-white metallic chemical element in the actinide series of the periodic table, with atomic number 92. It is assigned the chemical symbol U. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons...
, and thoriumThoriumThorium is a natural radioactive chemical element with the symbol Th and atomic number 90. It was discovered in 1828 and named after Thor, the Norse god of thunder.... - to increase scientific knowledge
- to test the impact of a sub-satellite (Moon Impact Probe — MIP) on the surface on the Moon as a fore-runner to future soft-landing missions
Specifications
- 1,380 kg at launch, 675 kg at lunar orbit, and 523 kg after releasing the impactor.
Dimensions
- Cuboid in shape of approximately 1.5 m
Communications
- X bandX bandThe X band is a segment of the microwave radio region of the electromagnetic spectrum. In some cases, such as in communication engineering, the frequency range of X band is rather indefinitely set at approximately 7.0 to 11.2 gigahertz . In radar engineering, the frequency range is specified...
, 0.7 m diameter dual gimbalGimbalA gimbal is a pivoted support that allows the rotation of an object about a single axis. A set of two gimbals, one mounted on the other with pivot axes orthogonal, may be used to allow an object mounted on the innermost gimbal to remain immobile regardless of the motion of its support...
led parabolic antenna for payload data transmission. The Telemetry, Tracking & Command (TTC) communication operates in S bandS bandThe S band is defined by an IEEE standard for radio waves with frequencies that range from 2 to 4 GHz, crossing the conventional boundary between UHF and SHF at 3.0 GHz. It is part of the microwave band of the electromagnetic spectrum...
frequency.
Power
- The spacecraft is mainly powered by its solar array, which includes one solar panel covering a total area of 2.15 x 1.8 m generating 750 WWattThe watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
of peak power, which is stored in a 36 A·hAmpere-hourAn ampere-hour or amp-hour is a unit of electric charge, with sub-units milliampere-hour and milliampere second...
lithium-ion battery for use during eclipses.
Propulsion
- The spacecraft uses a bipropellant integrated propulsion system to reach lunar orbit as well as orbit and altitude maintenance while orbiting the Moon. The power plant consists of one 440 N engine and eight 22 N thrusters. Fuel and oxidizer are stored in two tanks of 390 litres each.
Navigation and control
- The craft is 3-axis stabilized with two star sensors, gyros and four reaction wheels. The craft carries dual redundant bus management units for attitude control, sensor processing, antenna orientation, etc.
Specific areas of study
- High-resolution mineralogical and chemical imagingChemical imagingChemical imaging is the analytical capability to create a visual image of components distribution from simultaneous measurement of spectra and spatial, time informations....
of the permanently shadowed north- and south-polar regions - Searching for surface or sub-surface lunar water-ice, especially at the lunar poles
- Identification of chemicals in lunar highland rocks
- Chemical stratigraphyStratigraphyStratigraphy, a branch of geology, studies rock layers and layering . It is primarily used in the study of sedimentary and layered volcanic rocks....
of the lunar crust by remote sensing of the central uplandsHighland (geography)The term highland or upland is used to denote any mountainous region or elevated mountainous plateau. Generally speaking, the term upland tends to be used for ranges of hills, typically up to 500-600m, and highland for ranges of low mountains.The Scottish Highlands refers to the mountainous...
of large lunar craters, and of the South Pole Aitken Region (SPAR), an expected site of interior material - Mapping the height variation of features of the lunar surface
- Observation of X-rayX-rayX-radiation is a form of electromagnetic radiation. X-rays have a wavelength in the range of 0.01 to 10 nanometers, corresponding to frequencies in the range 30 petahertz to 30 exahertz and energies in the range 120 eV to 120 keV. They are shorter in wavelength than UV rays and longer than gamma...
spectrum greater than 10 keV and stereographic coverage of most of the Moon's surface with 5 m resolution - Providing new insights in understanding the Moon's origin and evolution
Payloads
The scientific payload had a total mass of 90 kg and contained five Indian instruments and six foreign instruments.Indian Payloads
- TMC or the Terrain Mapping Camera is a CCD camera with 5 m resolution and a 40 km swath in the panchromaticPanchromaticPanchromatic film is a type of black-and-white photographic film that is sensitive to all wavelengths of visible light. A panchromatic film therefore produces a realistic reproduction of a scene as it appears to the human eye. Almost all modern photographic film is panchromatic, but some types are...
band and was used to produce a high-resolution map of the Moon. The aim of this instrument was to completely map the topography of the Moon. The camera works in the visible region of the electromagnetic spectrum and captures black and white stereo images. When used in conjunction with data from Lunar Laser Ranging Instrument (LLRI), it can help in better understanding of the lunar gravitational field as well. TMC was built by the ISRO's Space Applications Centre (SAC) at Ahmedabad. The TMC was successfully tested on 29 October 2008 through a set of commands issued from ISTRAC.
- HySI or Hyper Spectral ImagerHyperspectral imagingHyperspectral imaging collects and processes information from across the electromagnetic spectrum. Much as the human eye sees visible light in three bands , spectral imaging divides the spectrum into many more bands...
performed mineralogical mapping in the 400-900 nm band with a spectral resolution of 15 nm and a spatial resolution of 80 m.
- LLRI or Lunar Laser Ranging Instrument determines the height of the surface topography by sending pulses of infraredInfraredInfrared light is electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength longer than that of visible light, measured from the nominal edge of visible red light at 0.74 micrometres , and extending conventionally to 300 µm...
laserLaserA laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of photons. The term "laser" originated as an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation...
light towards the lunar surface and detecting the reflected portion of that light. It operated continuously and collected 10 measurements per second on both the day and night sides of the Moon. It was successfully tested on 16 November 2008.
- HEX is a High Energy aj/gamma x-ray spectrometer for 30 – 200 keV measurements with ground resolution of 40 km, the HEX measured UUraniumUranium is a silvery-white metallic chemical element in the actinide series of the periodic table, with atomic number 92. It is assigned the chemical symbol U. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons...
, ThThoriumThorium is a natural radioactive chemical element with the symbol Th and atomic number 90. It was discovered in 1828 and named after Thor, the Norse god of thunder....
, 210PbIsotopes of leadLead has four stable isotopes: 204Pb, 206Pb, 207Pb, 208Pb. Lead-204 is entirely a primordial nuclide and is not a radiogenic nuclide. The three isotopes lead-206, lead-207, and lead-208 represent the ends of three decay chains called the uranium series , the actinium series, and the thorium...
, 222RnIsotopes of radonThere are 39 known isotopes of radon from 193Rn to 231Rn. The most stable isotope is 222Rn with a half-life of 3.823 days. Four isotopes, 218, 219, 220, 222Rn occur in trace quantities in nature as decay products of, respectively, 218At, 223Ra, 224Ra, and 226Ra...
degassing, and other radioactive elements.
- MIP or the Moon Impact ProbeMoon Impact ProbeThe Moon Impact Probe developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation , India's national space agency, was a lunar probe that was released by ISRO's Chandrayaan-1 lunar remote sensing orbiter which in turn was launched, on 22 October 2008, aboard a modified version of ISRO's Polar Satellite...
developed by the ISRO, is an impact probe which consisted of a C-band Radar altimeter for measurement of altitude of the probe, a video imaging system for acquiring images of the lunar surface and a mass spectrometer for measuring the constituents of the lunar atmosphere. It was ejected at 20:00 hours IST on 14 November 2008. The Moon Impact Probe successfully crash landed at the lunar south pole at 20:31 hours IST on 14 November 2008. It carried with it a picture of the Indian flag. India is now the fourth nation to place a flag on the Moon after the Soviet Union, United States and Japan.
Payload from other countries
- C1XS or X-ray fluorescence spectrometerX-ray fluorescenceX-ray fluorescence is the emission of characteristic "secondary" X-rays from a material that has been excited by bombarding with high-energy X-rays or gamma rays...
covering 1- 10 keV, mapped the abundance of MgMagnesiumMagnesium is a chemical element with the symbol Mg, atomic number 12, and common oxidation number +2. It is an alkaline earth metal and the eighth most abundant element in the Earth's crust and ninth in the known universe as a whole...
, AlAluminiumAluminium or aluminum is a silvery white member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al, and its atomic number is 13. It is not soluble in water under normal circumstances....
, SiSiliconSilicon is a chemical element with the symbol Si and atomic number 14. A tetravalent metalloid, it is less reactive than its chemical analog carbon, the nonmetal directly above it in the periodic table, but more reactive than germanium, the metalloid directly below it in the table...
, CaCalciumCalcium is the chemical element with the symbol Ca and atomic number 20. It has an atomic mass of 40.078 amu. Calcium is a soft gray alkaline earth metal, and is the fifth-most-abundant element by mass in the Earth's crust...
, TiTitaniumTitanium is a chemical element with the symbol Ti and atomic number 22. It has a low density and is a strong, lustrous, corrosion-resistant transition metal with a silver color....
, and FeIronIron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
at the surface with a ground resolution of 25 km, and monitored solar fluxFluxIn the various subfields of physics, there exist two common usages of the term flux, both with rigorous mathematical frameworks.* In the study of transport phenomena , flux is defined as flow per unit area, where flow is the movement of some quantity per time...
. This payload results from collaboration between Rutherford Appleton laboratory, U.K, ESA and ISRO. It was activated on 23 November 2008.
- SARA, The Sub-keV Atom Reflecting Analyser from the ESAEuropean Space AgencyThe European Space Agency , established in 1975, is an intergovernmental organisation dedicated to the exploration of space, currently with 18 member states...
mapped mineral composition using low energy neutral atoms emitted from the surface.
- M3, the Moon Mineralogy MapperMoon Mineralogy MapperThe Moon Mineralogy Mapper is one of two instruments that NASA contributed to India's first mission to the Moon, Chandrayaan-1, launched October 22, 2008...
from Brown UniversityBrown UniversityBrown University is a private, Ivy League university located in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1764 prior to American independence from the British Empire as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations early in the reign of King George III ,...
and JPL (funded by NASANASAThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
) is an imaging spectrometer designed to map the surface mineral composition. It was activated on 17 December 2008.
- SIR-2SIR-2The SIR-2 instrument is a redesigned, highly compact, monolithic grating, near infrared spectrometer chosen to be a payload on the Indian Chandrayaan-1 satellite...
, A near infrared spectrometerNear infrared spectroscopyNear-infrared spectroscopy is a spectroscopic method that uses the near-infrared region of the electromagnetic spectrum...
from ESA, built at the Max Planck Institute for Solar System ResearchMax Planck Institute for Solar System ResearchThe Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research is a research institute in Astronomy/Astrophysics, located in Lindau , Germany; 20 km north east of Göttingen. The exploration of our solar system is the central theme for the scientific research done at this Institute...
, Polish Academy of Science and University of BergenUniversity of BergenThe University of Bergen is located in Bergen, Norway. Although founded as late as 1946, academic activity had taken place at Bergen Museum as far back as 1825. The university today serves more than 14,500 students...
, also maped the mineral composition using an infrared grating spectrometerInfrared spectroscopyInfrared spectroscopy is the spectroscopy that deals with the infrared region of the electromagnetic spectrum, that is light with a longer wavelength and lower frequency than visible light. It covers a range of techniques, mostly based on absorption spectroscopy. As with all spectroscopic...
. The instrument is similar to that of the Smart-1SMART-1SMART-1 was a Swedish-designed European Space Agency satellite that orbited around the Moon. It was launched on September 27, 2003 at 23:14 UTC from the Guiana Space Centre in Kourou, French Guiana. "SMART" stands for Small Missions for Advanced Research in Technology...
SIR. It was activated on 19 November 2008 and scientific observations were successfully started on 20 November 2008.
- miniSAR, designed, built and tested for NASA by a large team that includes the Naval Air Warfare Center, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics LaboratoryApplied Physics LaboratoryThe Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory , located in Howard County, Maryland near Laurel and Columbia, is a not-for-profit, university-affiliated research center employing 4,500 people. APL is primarily a defense contractor. It serves as a technical resource for the Department of...
, Sandia National LaboratoriesSandia National LaboratoriesThe Sandia National Laboratories, managed and operated by the Sandia Corporation , are two major United States Department of Energy research and development national laboratories....
, RaytheonRaytheonRaytheon Company is a major American defense contractor and industrial corporation with core manufacturing concentrations in weapons and military and commercial electronics. It was previously involved in corporate and special-mission aircraft until early 2007...
and Northrop GrummanNorthrop GrummanNorthrop Grumman Corporation is an American global aerospace and defense technology company formed by the 1994 purchase of Grumman by Northrop. The company was the fourth-largest defense contractor in the world as of 2010, and the largest builder of naval vessels. Northrop Grumman employs over...
; it is the active Synthetic Aperture RadarSynthetic aperture radarSynthetic-aperture radar is a form of radar whose defining characteristic is its use of relative motion between an antenna and its target region to provide distinctive long-term coherent-signal variations that are exploited to obtain finer spatial resolution than is possible with conventional...
system to search for lunar polar ice. The instrument transmitted right polarised radiation with a frequency of 2.5 GHz and monitored scattered left and right polarised radiation. The Fresnel reflectivity and the circular polarisation ratio (CPR) are the key parameters deduced from these measurements. Ice shows the Coherent Backscatter Opposition Effect which results in an enhancement of reflections and CPR, so that water content of the Moon's polar regions can be estimated.
- RADOM-7RADOM-7RADOM is a Bulgarian Liulin-type spectrometry-dosimetry instrument, designed to precisely measure cosmic radiation around the Moon. It is installed on the Indian satellite Chandrayaan-1. Another three instruments were deployed on the International Space Station...
, Radiation Dose Monitor Experiment from the Bulgarian Academy of SciencesBulgarian Academy of SciencesThe Bulgarian Academy of Sciences is the National Academy of Bulgaria, established in 1869. The Academy is autonomous and has a Society of Academicians, Correspondent Members and Foreign Members...
maps the radiation environment around the Moon. It was successfully tested on 16 November 2008.
Space flight
Chandrayaan-1 was launched on 22 October 2008 at 6.22 am IST from Satish Dhawan Space CentreSatish Dhawan Space Centre
The Satish Dhawan Space Centre is the launch centre for the Indian Space Research Organisation . It is located in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh, India, north of Chennai in South India. It was originally called Sriharikota High Altitude Range , and was sometime known as Sriharikota Launching Range...
using the ISRO's 44.4 metre tall four-stage PSLV launch rocket. Chandrayaan-1 was sent to the Moon in a series of orbit-increasing manoeuvres around the Earth over a period of 21 days as opposed to launching the craft on a direct trajectory to the Moon. At launch the spacecraft was inserted into geostationary transfer orbit
Geostationary transfer orbit
A geosynchronous transfer orbit or geostationary transfer orbit is a Hohmann transfer orbit used to reach geosynchronous or geostationary orbit....
(GTO) with an apogee of 22,860 km and a perigee
Perigee
Perigee is the point at which an object makes its closest approach to the Earth.. Often the term is used in a broader sense to define the point in an orbit where the orbiting body is closest to the body it orbits. The opposite is the apogee, the farthest or highest point.The Greek prefix "peri"...
of 255 km. The apogee was increased with a series of five orbit burns conducted over a period of 13 days after launch.
For the duration of the mission, ISRO's telemetry, tracking and command network (ISTRAC
Indian Space Research Organisation Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network
The Indian Space Research Organization , over the years, established a comprehensive network of ground stations to provide Telemetry, Tracking and Command support to satellite and launch vehicle missions...
) at Peenya
Peenya
Peenya is the name of an industrial area of the Bangalore city in India. It is considered to be one of the largest industrial areas in Asia. Peenya lies on Bangalore - Mangalore Highway . It houses small, medium, and large scale industries...
in Bangalore
Bangalore
Bengaluru , formerly called Bengaluru is the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Bangalore is nicknamed the Garden City and was once called a pensioner's paradise. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka, Bangalore is India's third most populous city and...
, tracked and controlled Chandrayaan-1. Scientists from India, Europe, and the U.S. conducted a high-level review of Chandrayaan-1 on 29 January 2009 after the spacecraft completed its first 100 days in space.
Earth orbit burns
First orbit burnThe first orbit-raising manoeuvre of Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft was performed at 09:00 hrs IST on 23 October 2008 when the spacecraft’s 440 Newton Liquid Engine was fired for about 18 minutes by commanding the spacecraft from Spacecraft Control Centre (SCC) at ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC) at Peenya, Bangalore. With this Chandrayaan-1’s apogee was raised to 37,900 km, and its perigee to 305 km. In this orbit, Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft took about 11 hours to go around the Earth once.
Second orbit burn
The second orbit-raising manoeuvre of Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft was carried out on 25 October 2008 at 05:48 IST when the spacecraft’s engine was fired for about 16 minutes, raising its apogee to 74,715 km, and its perigee to 336 km, thus completing 20 percent of its journey. In this orbit, Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft took about twenty-five and a half hours to go round the Earth once. This is the first time an Indian spacecraft has gone beyond the 36,000 km high geostationary orbit and reached an altitude more than twice that height.
Third orbit burn
The third orbit raising manoeuvre was initiated on 26 October 2008 at 07:08 IST when the spacecraft’s engine was fired for about nine and a half minutes. With this its apogee was raised to 164,600 km, and the perigee to 348 km. In this orbit, Chandrayaan-1 took about 73 hours to go around the Earth once.
Fourth orbit burn
The fourth orbit-raising maneuver took place on 29 October 2008 at 07:38 IST when the spacecraft's engine was fired for about three minutes, raising its apogee to 267,000 km and the perigee to 465 km. This extended its orbit to a distance more than half the way to the Moon. In this orbit, the spacecraft took about six days to go around the Earth once.
Final orbit burn
The fifth and final orbit raising manoeuvre was carried out on 4 November 2008 04:56 am IST when the spacecraft’s engine was fired for about two and a half minutes resulting in Chandrayaan-1 entering the Lunar Transfer Trajectory
Trans Lunar Injection
A Trans Lunar Injection is a propulsive maneuver used to set a spacecraft on a trajectory which will arrive at the Moon.Typical lunar transfer trajectories approximate Hohmann transfers, although low energy transfers have also been used in some cases, as with the Hiten probe...
with an apogee of about 380,000 km.
Lunar orbit insertion
Chandrayaan-1 successfully completed the lunar orbit insertion operation on 8 Nov 2008 at 16:51 IST. This manoeuvre involved firing of the liquid engine for 817 seconds (about thirteen and half minutes) when the spacecraft passed within 500 km from the Moon. The satellite was placed in an elliptical orbit that passed over the polar regions of the Moon, with 7502 km aposeleneApsis
An apsis , plural apsides , is the point of greatest or least distance of a body from one of the foci of its elliptical orbit. In modern celestial mechanics this focus is also the center of attraction, which is usually the center of mass of the system...
(point farthest away from the Moon) and 504 km periselene,
Apsis
An apsis , plural apsides , is the point of greatest or least distance of a body from one of the foci of its elliptical orbit. In modern celestial mechanics this focus is also the center of attraction, which is usually the center of mass of the system...
(nearest to the Moon). The orbital period was estimated to be around 11 hours. With the successful completion of this operation, India became the sixth nation to put a vehicle in lunar orbit.
First orbit reduction
First Lunar Orbit Reduction Manoeuvre of Chandrayaan-1 was carried out successfully on 9 November 2008 at 20:03 IST. During this, the engine of the spacecraft was fired for about 57 seconds. This reduced the periselene from 504 km to 200 km while aposelene remained unchanged at 7,502 km. In this elliptical orbit, Chandrayaan-1 took about ten and a half hours to circle the Moon once.
Second orbit reduction
This manoeuvre, which resulted in steep decrease in Chandrayaan-1’s aposelene from 7,502 km to 255 km and its periselene from 200 km to 187 km, was carried out on 10 November 2008 at 21:58 IST. During this manoeuvre, the engine was fired for about 866 seconds (about fourteen and half minutes). Chandrayaan-1 took two hours and 16 minutes to go around the Moon once in this orbit.
Third orbit reduction
Third Lunar Orbit Reduction was carried out by firing the on board engine for 31 seconds on 11 November 2008 at 18:30 IST. This reduced the periselene from 187 km to 101 km, while the aposelene remained constant at 255 km. In this orbit Chandrayaan-1 took two hours and 9 minutes to go around the Moon once.
Final orbit
Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft was successfully placed into a mission-specific lunar polar orbit of 100 km above the lunar surface on 12 November 2008. In the final orbit reduction manoeuvre, Chandrayaan-1’s aposelene was reduced from 255 km to 100 km while the periselene was reduced from 101 km to 100 km. In this orbit, Chandrayaan-1 takes about two hours to go around the Moon once. Two of the 11 payloads – the Terrain Mapping Camera (TMC) and the Radiation Dose Monitor (RADOM) – have already been successfully switched on. The TMC successfully acquired images of both the Earth and the Moon.
Impact of the MIP on the lunar surface
The Moon Impact ProbeMoon Impact Probe
The Moon Impact Probe developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation , India's national space agency, was a lunar probe that was released by ISRO's Chandrayaan-1 lunar remote sensing orbiter which in turn was launched, on 22 October 2008, aboard a modified version of ISRO's Polar Satellite...
(MIP) crash-landed
Moon landing
A moon landing is the arrival of a spacecraft on the surface of the Moon. This includes both manned and unmanned missions. The first human-made object to reach the surface of the Moon was the Soviet Union's Luna 2 mission on 13 September 1959. The United States's Apollo 11 was the first manned...
on the lunar surface on 14 November 2008, 15:01 UTC (20:31 Indian Standard Time
Indian Standard Time
Indian Standard Time is the time observed throughout India and Sri Lanka, with a time offset of UTC+05:30. India does not observe daylight saving time or other seasonal adjustments, although DST was used briefly during the Sino–Indian War of 1962 and the Indo–Pakistani Wars of 1965 and 1971...
(IST)) near the crater Shackleton
Shackleton (crater)
Shackleton is an impact crater that lies at the south pole of the Moon. The peaks along the crater's rim are exposed to almost continual sunlight, while the interior is perpetually in shadow. The low-temperature interior of this crater functions as a cold trap that may capture and freeze volatiles...
at the south pole. The MIP was one of eleven scientific instruments (payloads) on board Chandrayaan-1.
The MIP separated from Chandrayaan at 100 km from lunar surface and began its nosedive at 14:36 UTC (20:06 IST). going into free fall for thirty minutes. As it fell, it kept sending information back to the mother satellite which, in turn, beamed the information back to Earth. The altimeter then also began recording measurements to prepare for a rover to land on the lunar surface during a second Moon mission - planned for 2012.
Following the successful deployment of the MIP, the other scientific instruments were turned on, starting the next phase of the mission.
After scientific analyses of the received data from the MIP, the Indian Space Research Organisation confirmed the presence of water in the lunar soil and published the finding in a press conference addressed by its then Chairman Sri. G. Madhavan Nair
G. Madhavan Nair
G. Madhavan Nair is the former Chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation and Secretary to the Department of Space, Government of India since September 2003. He is also the Chairman, Space Commission and acts as the Chairman of Governing Body of the Antrix Corporation, Bangalore...
.
Rise of spacecraft's temperature
ISRO had reported on 25 November 2008 that Chandrayaan-1's temperature had risen above normal to 50 °C, scientists said that it was caused by higher than normal temperatures in lunar orbit. The temperature was brought down by about 10 °C by rotating the spacecraft about 20 degrees and switching off some of the instruments. Subsequently ISRO reported on 27 November 2008 that the spacecraft was operating under normal temperature conditions. In subsequent reports ISRO says, since the spacecraft was still recording higher than normal temperatures, it would be running only one instrument at a time until January 2009 when lunar orbital temperature conditions are said to stabilise. The spacecraft was experiencing high temperature because of radiation from the Sun and infrared radiation reflected by the Moon.Mapping of minerals
The mineral content on the lunar surface was mapped with the Moon Mineralogy MapperMoon Mineralogy Mapper
The Moon Mineralogy Mapper is one of two instruments that NASA contributed to India's first mission to the Moon, Chandrayaan-1, launched October 22, 2008...
(M3), a NASA instrument on board the orbiter. The presence of iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
was reiterated and changes in rock and mineral composition have been identified. The Oriental Basin region of the Moon was mapped, and it indicates abundance of iron-bearing minerals such as pyroxene
Pyroxene
The pyroxenes are a group of important rock-forming inosilicate minerals found in many igneous and metamorphic rocks. They share a common structure consisting of single chains of silica tetrahedra and they crystallize in the monoclinic and orthorhombic systems...
.
Mapping of Apollo landing sites
ISRO claims that the landing sites of the Apollo Moon missions have been mapped by the orbiter using multiple payloads. Six of the sites have been mapped including that of Apollo 11Apollo 11
In early 1969, Bill Anders accepted a job with the National Space Council effective in August 1969 and announced his retirement as an astronaut. At that point Ken Mattingly was moved from the support crew into parallel training with Anders as backup Command Module Pilot in case Apollo 11 was...
, the first mission that brought humans on the Moon.
Images acquisition
The craft completed 3000 orbits acquiring 70000 images of the lunar surface, which many in ISRO believe is quite a record compared to the lunar flights of other nations. ISRO officials estimated that if more than 40,000 images have been transmitted by Chandrayaan's cameras in 75 days, it worked out to nearly 535 images being sent daily. They were first transmitted to Indian Deep Space NetworkIndian Deep Space Network
The Indian Deep Space Network is a network of large antennas and communication facilities that supports the interplanetary spacecraft missions of India. It is located at Byalalu, a village about 100 km from Bangalore, India. It was officially inaugurated on 17 October 2008 by ISRO chairman...
at Byalalu near Bangalore, from where they were flashed to ISRO's Telemetry Tracking And Command Network (ISTRAC)
Indian Space Research Organisation Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network
The Indian Space Research Organization , over the years, established a comprehensive network of ground stations to provide Telemetry, Tracking and Command support to satellite and launch vehicle missions...
at Bangalore.
Some of these images have a resolution of down to 5 metres, providing a sharp and clear picture of the Moon's surface, while many images sent by some of the other missions had only a 100-metre resolution.
On 26 November, the indigenous Terrain Mapping Camera, which was first activated on 29 October 2008, acquired images of peaks and craters. This came as a surprise to ISRO officials because the Moon consists mostly of craters.
Detection of X-Ray signals
The X-rayX-ray
X-radiation is a form of electromagnetic radiation. X-rays have a wavelength in the range of 0.01 to 10 nanometers, corresponding to frequencies in the range 30 petahertz to 30 exahertz and energies in the range 120 eV to 120 keV. They are shorter in wavelength than UV rays and longer than gamma...
signatures of aluminium
Aluminium
Aluminium or aluminum is a silvery white member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al, and its atomic number is 13. It is not soluble in water under normal circumstances....
, magnesium
Magnesium
Magnesium is a chemical element with the symbol Mg, atomic number 12, and common oxidation number +2. It is an alkaline earth metal and the eighth most abundant element in the Earth's crust and ninth in the known universe as a whole...
and silicon
Silicon
Silicon is a chemical element with the symbol Si and atomic number 14. A tetravalent metalloid, it is less reactive than its chemical analog carbon, the nonmetal directly above it in the periodic table, but more reactive than germanium, the metalloid directly below it in the table...
were picked up by the C1XS X-ray camera. The signals were picked up during a solar flare
Solar flare
A solar flare is a sudden brightening observed over the Sun surface or the solar limb, which is interpreted as a large energy release of up to 6 × 1025 joules of energy . The flare ejects clouds of electrons, ions, and atoms through the corona into space. These clouds typically reach Earth a day...
that caused an X-ray fluorescence
X-ray fluorescence
X-ray fluorescence is the emission of characteristic "secondary" X-rays from a material that has been excited by bombarding with high-energy X-rays or gamma rays...
phenomenon. The flare that caused the fluorescence was within the lowest C1XS sensitivity range.
Full Earth image
On 25 March 2009 Chandrayaan beamed back its first images of the Earth in its entirety. These images were taken with the TMC. Previous imaging was done on only one part of the Earth. The new images show Asia, parts of Africa and Australia with India being in the center.Orbit raised to 200 km due to malfunctions
After the completion of all the major mission objectives, the orbit of Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft, which was at a height of 100 km from the lunar surface since November 2008, had to be raised to 200 km due to malfunctions. The orbit raising manoeuvres were carried out between 09:00 and 10:00 IST on 19 May 2009. The spacecraft in this higher altitude enabled further studies on orbit perturbations, gravitational field variation of the Moon and also enabled imaging lunar surface with a wider swath. However, it was later revealed that the true reason for the orbit change was that it was an attempt to keep the temperature of the probe down. It was "...assumed that the temperature [of the spacecraft subsystems] at 100km above the Moon's surface would be around 75 degrees Celsius. However, it was more than 75 degrees and problems started to surface. We had to raise the orbit to 200km."Altitude sensing method switch due to Star Sensor failure
The star sensors, a device used for pointing altitude determination, of which the mission carried two, failed in orbit after nine months of operation. Afterward, the direction of Chandrayaan was determined using a back-up procedure using a two-axis Sun sensor and taking a bearing from a ground station. This was used to update three axis gyroscopeGyroscope
A gyroscope is a device for measuring or maintaining orientation, based on the principles of angular momentum. In essence, a mechanical gyroscope is a spinning wheel or disk whose axle is free to take any orientation...
s which enabled spacecraft operations, although some failures may have reduced the craft's lifetime. The second failure, detected on 16 May, was attributed to excessive radiation from the Sun.
Bistatic RADAR experiment with LRO
On 21 August 2009 Chandrayaan-1 along with the Lunar Reconnaissance OrbiterLunar Reconnaissance Orbiter
The Lunar Precursor Robotic Program is a program of robotic spacecraft missions which NASA will use to prepare for future human spaceflight missions to the Moon. Two LPRP missions, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter and the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite , were launched in June 2009...
was used to perform a bistatic radar
Bistatic radar
Bistatic radar is the name given to a radar system which comprises a transmitter and receiver which are separated by a distance that is comparable to the expected target distance. Conversely, a radar in which the transmitter and receiver are collocated is called a monostatic radar...
experiment to detect the presence of water ice on the lunar surface. In this experiment, Chandrayaan emanated RADAR pulses which, after reflection from the surface, were picked up by the receivers of both the Chandrayaan and the LRO. Both receivers, Mini-SAR in Chandrayaan and Mini-RF in LRO, were pointed at the Erlanger crater for four minutes during which the observations were made. In March 2010, it was reported that the Mini-Sar experiment on board the Chandrayaan-1 had discovered cold dark spots which are hypothesized to contain an estimated "at least 600 million metric tonnes" of water-ice held within northern polar craters.
End of the mission
The mission was launched in 22 October 2008 and expected to operate for 2 years. However, at 09.02 (UTC) on 29 August 2009 communication with the spacecraft was suddenly lost. The probe had operated for 312 days. The craft will remain in orbit for approximately another 1000 days, eventually crashing into the lunar surface.A member of the science advisory board of Chandrayaan-1 said that it is difficult to ascertain reasons for the loss of contact. ISRO Chairman -Madhavan Nair- said that due to very high radiation, power-supply units controlling both the computer systems on board failed, snapping the communication connectivity. However, information released later showed that the power supply failed due to overheating.
Completion of primary objectives
Although the mission was less than 10 months in duration, and less than half the intended 2 years in length, a review by scientists termed the mission successful, as it had completed 95% of its primary objectives, consisting of:- To construct the complex spacecraft with 11 scientific instruments.
- To place the spacecraft in a circular orbit around the Moon by orbit raising manoeuvres from a near Earth orbit.
- To place the Flag of IndiaFlag of IndiaThe National flag of India is a horizontal rectangular tricolour of deep saffron, white and India green; with the Ashok Chakra, a 24-spoke wheel, in navy blue at its centre. It was adopted in its present form during a meeting of the Constituent Assembly held on 22 July 1947, when it became the...
on the Moon. - To carry out imaging operations and to collect data on the mineral content of the lunar soilLunar soilLunar soil is the fine fraction of the regolith found on the surface of the Moon. Its properties can differ significantly from those of terrestrial soil...
. - To set up a deep space tracking networkIndian Deep Space NetworkThe Indian Deep Space Network is a network of large antennas and communication facilities that supports the interplanetary spacecraft missions of India. It is located at Byalalu, a village about 100 km from Bangalore, India. It was officially inaugurated on 17 October 2008 by ISRO chairman...
and implement the operational procedures for travel into deep space.
The data collected from the mission have been disseminated to Indian scientists and also the partners from Europe and U.S.A. for analysis.
Data collected analysis result
Chandrayaan's Moon Mineralogy MapperMoon Mineralogy Mapper
The Moon Mineralogy Mapper is one of two instruments that NASA contributed to India's first mission to the Moon, Chandrayaan-1, launched October 22, 2008...
has confirmed the magma ocean hypothesis, meaning that the moon was once completely molten. "It proves beyond doubt the magma ocean hypothesis. There is no other way this massive rock type could be formed," said Carle Pieters, science manager at the NASA-supported spectroscopy facility at Brown University in the US.
The Terrain mapping camera on board Chandrayaan-1 , besides producing more than 70,000 three dimensional images, has recorded images of the landing site of US spacecraft Apollo 15
Apollo 15
Apollo 15 was the ninth manned mission in the American Apollo space program, the fourth to land on the Moon and the eighth successful manned mission. It was the first of what were termed "J missions", long duration stays on the Moon with a greater focus on science than had been possible on previous...
, rubbishing conspiracy theories that the US mission to land on the moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
four decades back was a hoax.
"TMC and HySI payloads of ISRO have covered about 70 per cent of the lunar surface, while M3 covered more than 95 per cent of the same and SIR-2 has provided high-resolution spectral data on the mineralogy of the moon", ISRO said.
Indian Space Research Organisation said interesting data on lunar polar areas was provided by Lunar Laser Ranging Instrument (LLRI) and High Energy X-ray Spectrometer (HEX) of ISRO as well as Miniature Synthetic Aperture Radar (Mini-SAR) of the USA.
LLRI covered both the lunar poles and additional lunar regions of interest, HEX made about 200 orbits over the lunar poles and Mini-SAR provided complete coverage of both North and South Polar Regions of the moon.
Another ESA payload - Chandrayaan-1 imaging X-ray Spectrometer (C1XS) - detected more than two dozen weak solar flares during the mission duration. The Bulgarian payload called Radiation Dose Monitor (RADOM) was activated on the day of the launch itself and worked until the mission's end.
ISRO said scientists from India and participating agencies expressed satisfaction on the excellent performance of Chandrayaan-1 mission as well as the high quality of data sent by the spacecraft.
They have started formulating science plans based on the data sets obtained from the mission. It is expected that in the next few months, interesting results about lunar topography, mineral and chemical contents of the moon and related aspects are expected to be published,ISRO said.
A Chandrayaan-1 moon mission payload has enabled scientists to study the interaction between the solar wind and a planetary body like moon without a magnetic field, a meeting convened by ISRO was told.
In its 10-month orbit around the moon, Chandrayaan-1’s X-ray Spectrometer (C1XS) has detected titanium, confirmed the presence of calcium, and gathered the most accurate measurements yet of magnesium, aluminium and iron on the lunar surface.
Water discovered on the moon
This was confirmed on 24 September 2009, when Science Magazine reported that Moon Mineralogy MapperMoon Mineralogy Mapper
The Moon Mineralogy Mapper is one of two instruments that NASA contributed to India's first mission to the Moon, Chandrayaan-1, launched October 22, 2008...
(M3) on Chandrayaan-1 has detected water on the moon. M3 detected absorption features near 2.8-3.0 µm on the surface of the Moon. For silicate bodies, such features are typically attributed to hydroxyl
Hydroxyl
A hydroxyl is a chemical group containing an oxygen atom covalently bonded with a hydrogen atom. In inorganic chemistry, the hydroxyl group is known as the hydroxide ion, and scientists and reference works generally use these different terms though they refer to the same chemical structure in...
- and/or water
Water (properties)
Water is the most abundant compound on Earth's surface, covering about 70%. In nature, it exists in liquid, solid, and gaseous states. It is in dynamic equilibrium between the liquid and gas states at standard temperature and pressure. At room temperature, it is a tasteless and odorless liquid,...
-bearing materials. On the Moon, the feature is seen as a widely distributed absorption that appears strongest at cooler high latitudes and at several fresh feldspathic craters. The general lack of correlation of this feature in sunlit M3 data with neutron spectrometer H abundance data suggests that the formation and retention of OH and H2O is an ongoing surficial process. OH/H2O production processes may feed polar cold traps and make the lunar regolith a candidate source of volatiles for human exploration.
The Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3), an imaging spectrometer, was one of the 11 instruments on board Chandrayaan-I that came to a premature end on 29 August 2009. M3 was aimed at providing the first mineral map of the entire lunar surface.
Lunar scientists have for decades contended with the possibility of water repositories. They are now increasingly “confident that the decades-long debate is over,” a report says. “The moon, in fact, has water in all sorts of places; not just locked up in minerals, but scattered throughout the broken-up surface
Surface
In mathematics, specifically in topology, a surface is a two-dimensional topological manifold. The most familiar examples are those that arise as the boundaries of solid objects in ordinary three-dimensional Euclidean space R3 — for example, the surface of a ball...
, and, potentially, in blocks or sheets of ice at depth.” The results from the Chandrayaan mission are also “offering a wide array of watery signals.”
How the moon produces its own water
A scientific instrument on Chandrayaan-1 — the Sub keV Atom Reflecting Analyser or SARA — made this discovery that was published in the latest edition of the Planetary and Space Science journal.According to European Space Agency
European Space Agency
The European Space Agency , established in 1975, is an intergovernmental organisation dedicated to the exploration of space, currently with 18 member states...
(ESA) scientists, hydrogen nuclei from solar winds are absorbed by the lunar regolith (a loose collection of irregular dust grains making up the moon’s surface). An interaction between the hydrogen nuclei and oxygen present in the dust grains are expected to produce hydroxyls and water.
SARA, developed by the ESA and the Indian Space Research Organisation, was designed to study the moon’s surface composition and solar wind-surface interactions. Recently, another instrument on the Indian spacecraft, the Moon Mineralogy Mapper — an imaging spectrometer developed by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration — first found water molecules on the lunar surface.
SARA’s results also highlight a mystery: not every hydrogen nucleus is absorbed. One out of every five rebounds into space, combining to form an atom of hydrogen. “We didn’t expect to see this at all,” said Stas Barabash of the Swedish Institute of Space Physics, who is the European Principal Investigator for SARA.
Hydrogen shoots off at speeds of around 200 km per second and escapes without being deflected by the moon’s weak gravity, the team found.
This knowledge provides timely advice for scientists who are readying ESA’s BepiColombo
BepiColombo
BepiColombo is a joint mission of the European Space Agency and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency to the planet Mercury, due to launch in 2014. The mission is still in the planning stages so changes to the current description are likely over the next few years...
mission to mercury. The spacecraft will carry two instruments similar to SARA and may find that the innermost planet is reflecting more hydrogen than the moon because the solar wind is more concentrated closer to the sun.
Discovery of caves on the moon
Chandrayaan-1 discovered large caves below the lunar surface - caves that could act as shelters for humans. The tunnel, which has been discovered near the lunar equator, is an empty volcanic tube, measuring about two km in length and 360 metres in width. According to AS Arya, scientist SF of Ahmedabad-based Space Application Centre (SAC), this could be a potential site for human settlement on moon. Earlier, Japanese Lunar orbiter Kaguya (SELENE) had also discovered a cave on moon.Awards for Chandrayaan-1
The American Institute of Aeronautics and AstronauticsAmerican Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics is the professional society for the field of aerospace engineering. The AIAA was founded in 1963 from the merger of two earlier societies: the American Rocket Society , founded in 1930 as the American Interplanetary Society , and the Institute...
(AIAA) has selected ISRO's Chandrayaan-1 mission as one of the recipients of its annual AIAA SPACE 2009 awards, which recognizes key contributions to space science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
and technology
Technology
Technology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;...
.
The International Lunar Exploration Working Group (ILEWG) chose the Chandrayaan-1 team for giving the International Cooperation award, M, Annadurai, project director, Chandrayaan-1.The Chandrayaan team of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) was chosen for the award for accommodation and tests of the most international lunar payload ever (from 20 countries consisting of India, the European Space Agency
European Space Agency
The European Space Agency , established in 1975, is an intergovernmental organisation dedicated to the exploration of space, currently with 18 member states...
representing 17 European countries, NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
and Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
) and the successful launch of the probe on PSLV rocket on 22 October and the lunar insertion of the spacecraft carried out subsequently.
Team
The scientists considered instrumental to the success of the Chandrayaan-1 project are:- G. Madhavan NairG. Madhavan NairG. Madhavan Nair is the former Chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation and Secretary to the Department of Space, Government of India since September 2003. He is also the Chairman, Space Commission and acts as the Chairman of Governing Body of the Antrix Corporation, Bangalore...
– Chairman, Indian Space Research Organization - Dr. T. K. Alex – Director, ISAC (ISRO Satellite Centre)
- Dr.Mylswamy Annadurai – Project Director, Chandrayan-1
- S. K. ShivkumarS. K. ShivkumarDr. S. K. Shivkumar is an Indian scientist who was instrumental in the development of the telemetry system for Chandrayaan-I, India's unmanned lunar exploration mission. A native of Mysore in the state of Karnataka, he was responsible for designing the deep space communications in his capacity as...
– Director - Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network - Mr. M.Pitchaimani – Operations Director, Chandrayan-1
- Mr. Leo Jackson John – Spacecraft Operations Manager, Chandrayan-1
- Dr. K. Radhakrishnan (scientist)K. Radhakrishnan (scientist)K. Radhakrishnan is an Indian scientist and the Chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation . He also served as the director of Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre , Thiruvananthapuram. He was born in Kerala, India...
– Director, VSSC - George Koshy – Mission Director, PSLV-C11
- Srinivasa Hegde – Mission Director, Chandrayaan-1
- Prof. J N Goswami – Director of Physical Research Laboratory and Principal Scientific Investigator of Chandrayaan-1
- Rajendra Masanta - Server Operation Lead Specialist - Pool - 19 Space Satellite
- Anil Prasad - Server Operation Specialist - Pool - 19 Space Satellite
Public release of Data
ISRO has stated recently, that the voluminous data gathered by Chandrayaan-I would be made available to the public by the end of the year 2010. The data would be eventually split into two seasons with the first season going public by the end of 2010 and the second going public by the mid of 2011. The data would contain rare pictures of the moon and also data from the chemical and mineral mapping of the lunar surface.Chandrayaan-2
ISRO is also planning a second version of Chandrayaan named Chandrayaan II. According to former ISRO Chairman G. Madhavan NairG. Madhavan Nair
G. Madhavan Nair is the former Chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation and Secretary to the Department of Space, Government of India since September 2003. He is also the Chairman, Space Commission and acts as the Chairman of Governing Body of the Antrix Corporation, Bangalore...
, "The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) hopes to land two motorised rovers
Rover (space exploration)
A rover is a space exploration vehicle designed to move across the surface of a planet or other astronomical body. Some rovers have been designed to transport members of a human spaceflight crew; others have been partially or fully autonomous robots...
- one Russian and another Indian - on the Moon in 2013, as a part of its second Chandrayaan mission. The rover will be designed to move on wheels on the lunar surface, pick up samples of soil or rocks, do on-site chemical analysis and send the data to the mother-spacecraft Chandrayaan II, which will be orbiting above. Chandrayaan II will transmit the data to Earth."
Lunar outpost
Chandrayaan's imagery will be used to identify regions of interest that will be explored in detail by the NASA Lunar Reconnaissance OrbiterLunar Reconnaissance Orbiter
The Lunar Precursor Robotic Program is a program of robotic spacecraft missions which NASA will use to prepare for future human spaceflight missions to the Moon. Two LPRP missions, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter and the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite , were launched in June 2009...
. The interest lies in identifying lunar water on the surface that can be exploited in setting up a future lunar outpost
Lunar outpost (NASA)
A lunar outpost was an element of the George W. Bush era Vision for Space Exploration, which has been replaced with President Barack Obama's space policy. The outpost would have been an inhabited facility on the surface of the Moon. At the time it was proposed, NASA was to construct the outpost...
. The Mini-SAR, one of the U.S payloads on Chandrayaan, was used to determine the presence of water ice.
See also
- ISRO Orbital VehicleISRO Orbital VehicleThe Indian manned spacecraft temporarily named Orbital Vehicle is intended to be the basis of the indigenous Indian human spaceflight program. The capsule will be designed to carry three people, and a planned upgraded version will be equipped with rendezvous and docking capability.In its maiden...
- List of Indian satellites
- List of artificial objects on the Moon
- List of current and future lunar missions
- Lunar water
- Exploration of the MoonExploration of the MoonThe physical exploration of the Moon began when Luna 2, a space probe launched by the Soviet Union, made an impact on the surface of the Moon on September 14, 1959. Prior to that the only available means of exploration had been observation. The invention of the optical telescope brought about the...
External links
Chandrayaan- ISRO Image Galleries: Pictures | Spacecraft, Component and Ground Segment | First Results
- Official Homepage of Chandrayaan-1
- Chandrayaan Forum