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Science India inserts Chandrayaan-1 into Moon orbit
Science India inserts Chandrayaan-1 into Moon orbit | India inserts Chandrayaan-1 into Moon orbit |
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| by William Atkins | |
| Sunday, 09 November 2008 | |
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Science DiscussionsThe Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft was placed into a 7,500-kilometer by 500-kilometer (4,500-mile by 300-mile) orbit around the moon. Upon insertion into its ten-hour preliminary lunar orbit, ISRO director S. Satish stated, “The liquid apogee motor (LAM) onboard was fired for 805 seconds (13.4 minutes) between 5 pm and 5.15 pm to put the spacecraft into the elliptical orbit around the moon.” [The Times of India: “Chandrayaan enters lunar orbit”] The elliptical orbit will eventually be modified to a 500-kilometer by 100-kilometer (300-mile by 60-mile) orbit over the next few days. Satish stated, “The spacecraft will be gently pushed to its designated slot in the lunar orbit and positioned at a distance 100 km from the surface of the moon.” [The Times of India] He added, "The health of the spacecraft is good and its vital functions are operating normally.” The lunar orbiter/impactor was launched at 6:23 India Standard Time (0052 UTC) on October 22, 2008. from the Satish Dhawan Space Center, Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh. It lifted off for its scientific and exploratory mission through a modified PSLV-XL rocket. Page two states the mission's objectives. |
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