ISRO completes test of Chandrayaan-2, gears up for another Moon mission
New Delhi : The reputed Indian Space Research Organisation said on Friday, that it has successfully completed a scaled-down test of its Chandrayaan-2 lander. It is likely that India is ready for second moon mission.
Named after the father of Indian space programme Vikram Sarabhai, the moon lander will carry out various tests on the moon surface. "Scaled-down version of Chandrayaan-2 Lander Vikram completed, critical Lander Actuator Performance Test (LAPT) to demonstrate capabilities of navigation, guidance and control system of Vikram for a safe, soft and precise landing on the Moon," ISRO said in a release.
The final test was conducted to check the effect of earth's gravity as compared to the Moon's and to match the thrust generation of sea level liquid engines as compared to flight engines, which will operate in vacuum environment, it said.
A source close to the development said that the module was tied to a crane hook for conducting the test at a special test facility at ISRO Propulsion Complex in Mahendragiri in Tamil Nadu. It was the third test to demonstrate retargeting in a parabolic trajectory.
The LAPT exhibited the capability of the NGC system of 'Vikram' to meet the mission requirement of safe, soft and precise landing on the lunar surface by steering the module horizontally as well as vertically down to a pre-defined target, the release said.
"With this, all the tests have been completed successfully. This is a major milestone accomplished in Chandrayaan-2 Lander," it said.
As per the official report, ISRO intends to launch Chandrayaan-2 sometime in January next year. The Mission will have an orbiter, lander and a rover. To recall, India lunched its first successful Chandrayaan 1 in October 2008.
Scientists have found frozen water deposits in the darkest and coldest parts of the Moon's Polar Regions using data from the Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft, US space agency NASA said earlier in the month of August.
