Chandrayaan 2 - A mission to know the unknown


ISRO launched its much-awaited space mission, Chandrayaan 2, on July 22nd, 2019.
From the space research institute to the people in the government to the media houses to the common folks, everyone was going gaga over the mission launch and the groundbreaking insights the mission can provide us with.
Taking a walk into the unknown

With Chandrayaan 2, the Indian scientists intend to go where no country has ever gone before - the Moon's south polar region.
The successful execution of the mission will enable us to know more about the Moon. We will have insights and discoveries which will shape up future lunar expeditions and encourage the new generation to be scientists and explorers.


What makes Chandrayaan 2 special?
You probably don't know that Chandrayaan 2 was initially meant to be a joint venture between Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) and ISRO. Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) was to design and develop the lander, and ISRO was tasked to develop orbiter and rover. And though ISRO completed its work and met the deadlines, Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) could not develop the lander, and eventually backed off from the project. ISRO eventually had to develop the lander on its own as well. 
Below, we're sharing a couple of reasons which make Chandrayaan 2 mission special for India:
§  First space mission to conduct a soft landing on the Moon's south polar region
§  First Indian lunar mission to attempt a soft landing on the surface with home-grown technology
§  4th country ever to soft-land on the lunar surface
§  First Indian attempt to explore the lunar surface with home-grown technology 

Launcher and the Spacecraft
Launcher
The launcher is named GSLV Mk-II. ISRO used this launcher to carry Chandrayaan 2 to its designated orbit.
You may not know that GSLV Mk-II can launch 4-ton class of satellites to the Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO).
Orbiter  
The orbiter's primary responsibility is to observe the surface of the moon. It will also receive and pass on the communication between our earth and the lander used in the mission.
It is to be noted that the orbiter's mission life is one year and will be placed in a 100X100 km lunar polar orbit.
Lander
The lander has been named 'Vikram,' kept after Dr. Vikram A Sarabhai who sculpted the future of space technology and missions in India.
The lander is meant to function for one lunar day (equals to about 14 earth days). It will help execute a soft landing on the lunar surface. 
Rover - Pragyan
Scientists have named it Pragyan, which is a Sanskrit word meaning 'wisdom'. As per the ISRO, it can travel up to 500 m (½-a-km) and leans on to the solar energy for its functioning.
We wish ISOR scientists all the luck for the success of this mission! May things go as per their plans, and India soon could unfurl its flag on the surface of the moon!

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