India's moonshot Chandrayaan 2 has been successfully manoeuvred into lunar orbit today, after nearly 30 days of space travel. This was one of the trickiest operations in the mission. A higher-than-expected approach velocity would have bounced off the spacecraft into deep space, while a slow approach would have led to the moon's gravity to pull Chandrayaan 2 and crash it on the lunar surface. The approach velocity had to be just right and the altitude over the moon rather precise. Even a small error would have killed the mission. The process of setting down Chandrayaan 2 on the moon is very complex since it blasted off at a velocity of 39,240 kilometres per hour, which is almost 30 times the speed at which sound travels through air. India's most ambitious space mission to date, Chandrayaan 2 had lifted off from India's spaceport at Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh on July 22. The lift-off was successful in its second attempt, a week after it was aborted just under an hour from its launch due to a technical glitch. The mission stands out because of its low cost, with just about Rs. 1,000 crore spent - a much smaller price tag compared to similar missions by other countries.
Here are the LIVE Updates of ISRO's moon mission Chandrayaan 2:
Congratulations to India and Team @ISRO for successfully completing Lunar Orbit insertion of #Chandrayaan2
- Israel in India (@IsraelinIndia) August 20, 2019
Good Luck for a successful & soft landing on the moon next month!#TuesdayMotivation https://t.co/VhQVLvw1HN
Congratulations to @isro scientists on successful insertion of #Chandrayaan2 into the Lunar Orbit.
- Rajnath Singh (@rajnathsingh) August 20, 2019
The smooth entry of Chandrayaan2 Moon's orbit is yet another significant achievement for our scientists. Looking forward to the landing of 'Pragyaan' on the moon next month.
Why are countries across the world investing their resources to reach the Moon's South Pole? Read on to find out. #Chandrayaan2 #ISRO #MoonMission pic.twitter.com/NHdcjsDKCL
- ISRO (@isro) August 19, 2019
#ISRO
- ISRO (@isro) August 20, 2019
Today (August 20, 2019) after the Lunar Orbit Insertion (LOI), #Chandrayaan2 is now in Lunar orbit. Lander Vikram will soft land on Moon on September 7, 2019 pic.twitter.com/6mS84pP6RD
Dr. K. Sivan, Chairman, ISRO said, "After the launch of the mission on July 22, 5 earth bound orbits happened. On August 14, 2019 at 2:21 am, a very important manoeuvre happened. On August 19, 2019 around 2 pm the moon also got near the mission and then it entered the orbit."
#ISRO
- ISRO (@isro) August 20, 2019
Lunar Orbit Insertion (LOI) of #Chandrayaan2 maneuver was completed successfully today (August 20, 2019). The duration of maneuver was 1738 seconds beginning from 0902 hrs IST
For more details visit https://t.co/FokCl5pDXg
#ISRO
- ISRO (@isro) August 20, 2019
Dr. K. Sivan, Chairman, ISRO will brief media today (August 20, 2019) at 1100 hrs IST on the occasion of Lunar Orbit Insertion of #Chandrayaan2
Stay tuned on our website and youtube channel to watch live
