India Loses Contact With Chandrayaan-2 Moon Lander During Its Descent | Page 2 | World Defense

India Loses Contact With Chandrayaan-2 Moon Lander During Its Descent

I.R.A

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If we don't wish to live our remaining lives hearing to vedic science achievements, we should be taking this serious and try to counter it in anyway possible. Its an elite club and india in that club isn't a good news (given to their mentality and intolerance).
 
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Sep 9, 2019, 09:12pm
India’s Moon Mission Was Anything But A Failure. Here’s Why






Robin Andrews Senior Contributor

Science




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INDIA-SPACE-MOON-EXPLORATION

A radar scans the skies with the moon in the background at ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC) facility, on September 6, 2019 in Bangalore. - Chandrayaan-2 space exploration mission consisting of a lunar orbiter, a lander named
AFP/Getty Images
Space is hard.
That simple sentiment, bursting with painful verisimilitude, was the order of the day when the Indian Space Research Organisation’s attempted, historic soft landing of its uncrewed contraption near the moon’s south pole went awry. Things were initially looking good for the Vikram lander – and its internalised exploratory rover, Pragyan – for some time, before the descent went off course during its final moments. Due to land on the lunar surface around a month after it was launched into space, technicians instead lost contact with it seconds before it was supposed to touch down in the dusty, unexplored regolith.
The antagonists behind the failed landing remain under investigation, and as of now remain inconclusive. The lander itself may not be totally lost; spotted from orbit, it appears to have remained in one piece. It has tipped onto its side, though, and attempts to communicate with it have so far been unsuccessful.
It certainly seems like a time to mourn the loss of a nearly historic mission to the moon. As some have pointed out, though, this endavour is not what you would call a failure by anyone’s standards.


Today In: Innovation

The Chandrayaan-2 mission, like its Chandrayaan-1 predecessor, managed to deploy its orbiter without incident before the apparently doomed landing attempt took place. As noted by Emily Lakdawalla of the The Planetary Society, the orbiter – an eye up in the moon’s airless sky – will keep watch over our world’s sole natural satellite for an entire year.
If the orbiter was lost too, then sure, this mission would be a devastating, but not unforeseeable, failure. Space is hard. But the ingenuity of India’s scientists and engineers means that ISRO will now be able to conduct a myriad of phenomenal, cutting-edge lunar research regardless of whether or not they can salvage Vikram.


The orbiter, connected with the Indian Deep Space Network – a collection of antennas and relays to support its interplanetary missions – is absolutely packed with top-notch tech. Here’s a taste of what that little orbiter will be able to accomplish as it spins around the moon in glorious solitude.
Scale Models of India's launches ambitious mission to the moon, special scale models on display

BENGALURU, INDIA, JULY 23: Scale models of the Indian moon shot on display at the head quarters of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). These models were placed at the feet of Lord Venkateshwara at the Tirupati Temple. These are now on
Corbis via Getty Images
- Its Terrain Mapping Camera 2, or TMC 2, will be able to develop a detailed cartography of the lunar surface to a fairly decent resolution. This will help create 3D maps of the surface of the moon’s most massive scar, full of elusive, oft-hidden topographies and locked up supplies of water ice.
- This will be aided by a radar system, one that will be capable of peering into regions of the moon that are perpetually in shadow. The radar will bounce off and warp inside the surface-level formations, and scientists will be able to use these perturbations to calculate the various thicknesses of said formations, including that all-important water ice.
- The devil is in the details, which is why the infrared spectrometer instrument will come in handy. Using the characteristics of the light being emitted by the rocks lingering at the surface, this piece of kit will be able to identify a range of mineral species, thereby improving our understanding of the moon’s geology and how its south polar region varies from, say, the near side regions sampled by the Apollo missions around half a century earlier.
- It’s not all about the moon. The orbiter’s X-ray Monitor will look at the fury being emitted by the Sun and its enigmatic, wisp-like corona, in effect allowing scientists to see how much solar radiation makes it to the moon, and how it changes along its journey.
Originally designed to last a year, the orbiters flawless insertion into a stable lunar ballet is now reportedly allowing it to function for almost seven years. Short of a rogue cometary or asteroidal fragment slamming into the orbiter, then, these instruments – and several others – will keep working, providing scientists all over the world with game-changing data until potentially sometime in 2026.
The fact that ISRO managed to place it there is an enormously laudable feat, and act of technical wizardry so immediately rewarding that it almost doesn’t matter that Vikram toppled over and went silent. It is, of course, hugely disappointing that Vikram looks to be unrecoverable. The science it and its Pragyan rover could have carried out in one of the geologically strangest and increasingly strategic parts of the Moon would have been a thrill to see. But, you know, space is hard.
Don’t let that crash-landing get you down, though; the moon still has a brand-new robotic friend, one that will, in time, reveal more of its secrets than anyone can possibly imagine

 
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It is unfortunate that the soft landing of Vikram did not go as planned. However, the majority of the mission's payloads are on the Chandrayaan orbiter, which was successfully put in the moon's orbit, and ISRO did come closer than any other agency to soft landing on the lunar South Pole, learning some valuable information that can be used for future missions in the process.
 

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Scale models of the Indian moon shot on display at the head quarters of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). These models were placed at the feet of Lord Venkateshwara at the Tirupati Temple.

Why make it a religious thing?
 
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Some members here should keep in mind that while the soft landing was unfortunately unsuccessful, ISRO did successfully launch the orbiter into orbit, which will last for as long as 7 years and provide valuable information about the lunar surface. There is a reason why ISRO has received international praise for the mission despite the last-minute setback.

Also, India did end up landing on the lunar south pole, although it was a hard landing rather than the planned soft landing. Still a good achievement for the first attempt.
 

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I really don't see the big deal. People have the right to offer whatever they want to the god of their choice.

No problem with the people, but has indian state gone from secular to being an all Hindu only country? Had india been successful, would it have been an indian accomplishment or modi's Hindutva accomplishment?
 
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No problem with the people, but has indian state gone from secular to being an all Hindu only country? Had india been successful, would it have been an indian accomplishment or modi's Hindutva accomplishment?
Isro is an apolitical organization. Keep in mind Chandryaan began when Manmohan is in power. The reason ISRO is so effective is because it does its job regardless of whatever the political situation may be.
 

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Isro is an apolitical organization. Keep in mind Chandryaan began when Manmohan is in power. The reason ISRO is so effective is because it does its job regardless of whatever the political situation may be.

You are not addressing my concern, I am asking about, how india and indians would have acted suppose this was a successful landing. Keeping in mind the kind of news we get from india these days and the kind of government running the affairs there, I being a Pakistani would say its good that they failed.
 
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You are not addressing my concern, I am asking about, how india and indians would have acted suppose this was a successful landing. Keeping in mind the kind of news we get from india these days and the kind of government running the affairs there, I being a Pakistani would say its good that they failed.
Well I understand your point of view as a Pakistani, but a successful landing would have been a source of pride for all Indians, regardless of religion. Even though the soft landing was unsuccessful, there is still a lot of pride that India has come closer than any other country to the lunar south pole. I have seen Muslims, Sikhs, and Christians praising ISRO on Social media.

As for how the Indian government would have reacted, well obviously it would have promoted it. The government is still promoting the fact that the mission achieved 90% of its objectives.
 

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As for how the Indian government would have reacted, well obviously it would have promoted it. The government is still promoting the fact that the mission achieved 90% of its objectives.

Promotion and Pakistan bashing are two different things by the way. And in my view indian government is face saving by calling it a 90% success. If the end goal hasn't been achieved then what is there to celebrate? I don't know why indians fall for this government's lies, but its of concern for us in Pakistan.
 
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Promotion and Pakistan bashing are two different things by the way. And in my view indian government is face saving by calling it a 90% success. If the end goal hasn't been achieved then what is there to celebrate? I don't know why indians fall for this government's lies, but its of concern for us in Pakistan.
I believe the article explained that pretty well. Chandrayaan 2 had multiple objectives, there was no "end goal." Obviously, setbacks and disappointments occur in scientific missions, that is just part of the process. And in numeric terms, 8 of the 14 payloads were delivered on the orbiter. So there is a reason to celebrate, despite the dissapointment of the soft landing not succeeding. And the Government doesn't need to face save, since organizations such as NASA and the ESA have all praised ISRO for the successes of Chandrayaan.

Also, I highly doubt India would have used space as a way to bash Pakistan. India became the first country in Asia to send a satellite to Mars, did it use that as a way to bash Pakistan? If anything, it is Pakistan who is out of line in this case. Indians and Pakistanis trolling each other is one thing, but unprofessional behavior by Cabinet Ministers and high ranking military officers is another. Why does the director of Pakistan's military PR wing need to comment about a civilian space mission?

So while I understand your concerns, it actually seems like they are applying more to Pakistan in this case.

Personally, I think it is unfortunate that the current situation between India and Pakistan has gotten so bad that civilian space mission have been politicized. I think it would be great if someday, India and Pakistan could jointly launch such missions.
 
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