I remember it vividly. We got a snapshot every second or two, then the full video was uploaded back to Earth later. Edit: Found the live broadcast.
The launch of the next Moon mission could be just four months away. India plans to return to the Moon in a big way with the ambitious Chandrayaan-2, which includes an orbiter, lander, and a small rover. If it all succeeds, it will be India's first soft landing on another world, and only the second such landing since the end of the Apollo and Luna era. For India, landing success would be "a stepping stone for future exploration missions to other planets," according to Indian Space Research Organisation Satellite Centre (ISAC) director M. Annadurai.
Chandrayaan-2 is planned to launch in March from ISRO's Sriharikota launch center aboard a Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark 2 (GSLV Mk 2) rocket, making it ISRO's first deep-space launch on its newer, heavier launch vehicle. The combined mass of the three component spacecraft is 3250 kilograms, dramatically larger than the approximately 1300-kilogram mass of both Chandrayaan-1 and Mars Orbiter Mission, both of which launched on smaller Polar Satellite Launch Vehicles (PSLVs).
The GSLV will place Chandrayaan-2 into an elliptical Earth parking orbit, enlarging it over days or weeks with periapsis burns to raise the orbit apogee. Eventually, the apogee will be high enough that a burn can send the spacecraft on to a lunar transfer trajectory. A lunar orbit insertion burn will place Chandrayaan-2 into an elliptical orbit and the spacecraft will begin braking at periapsis to reduce its orbit to a 100-kilometer circle.
Sivan said, "After the Cartosat mission, the subsequent launch will be of Gsat-6A that will be lifted off by a GSLV Mk II rocket". "The launch of navigation satellite IRNSS-1I, which will replace the first navigation satellite IRNSS-1A, whose three atomic clocks (meant to provide precise locational data) had stopped working last year, is planned in February or March," he said, adding, "Next in line will be the Chandrayaan-2 mission, scheduled for launch in March."
Scientists at the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) are set to conduct a breathtaking stunt at Mahendragiri hills in Tamil Nadu. A bungee jump is being planned for Chandrayaan-2 craft as part of soft landing tests using a 100-metre tall crane (as tall as a 10-storeyed building) specially built for the purpose.
Chandrayaan-2 is India’s most ambitious project as yet consisting of an orbiter, lander and a small rover. If it succeeds, it will be India’s first soft-landing on the Moon, and only the second such landing since the end of the Apollo and Luna missions.
He said the craft, weighing about half-a-tonne, will be lowered from 100 metres and ignited in a lower gravity condition like that of the Moon.
Chandrayaan-2 set for bungee jump test in Mahendragiri hills of Tamil NaduQuoteScientists at the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) are set to conduct a breathtaking stunt at Mahendragiri hills in Tamil Nadu. A bungee jump is being planned for Chandrayaan-2 craft as part of soft landing tests using a 100-metre tall crane (as tall as a 10-storeyed building) specially built for the purpose.
Further, are the launch window constraints more relaxed, as this is not a direct trans-lunar injection?
Among the innovations and value additions being developed is the augmentation of the GSLV Mark II launch vehicle. Dr. Sivan said its lifting capability would soon be enhanced from 2.2 tonnes to 3.3 tonnes. The capability then would go up by 1.5 times and would reflect in its per-kilo cost, which could make it quite competitive to future commercial users in the launchers market.The first launch of the enhanced GSLV, after necessary tests and confirmations, will be the 3.2-tonne Chandrayaan-2 spacecraft, scheduled to be launched in April.
Where is the 1,100 kg or 50% payload increase (from 2.2 to 3.3 t) for GSLV Mk.II coming from?
Does this version have a new name designation or is it just a plain GSLV Mk.II?
Quote from: Steven Pietrobon on 01/31/2018 06:21 amWhere is the 1,100 kg or 50% payload increase (from 2.2 to 3.3 t) for GSLV Mk.II coming from?Most likely from these upgrades: - New high thrust vikas engine- New C-15 cryogenic stage with increased thrust (95kn vs 75kn from old engine)- Overall dry mass reduction - Possible replacement of S139 with S200 to increase core burn time from 100 seconds to 130 seconds
It will have the same name. It is just a natural evolution of the GSLV MK-2 not a complete new rocket.
Most likely from these upgrades: - New high thrust vikas engine- New C-15 cryogenic stage with increased thrust (95kn vs 75kn from old engine)- Overall dry mass reduction - Possible replacement of S139 with S200 to increase core burn time from 100 seconds to 130 secondsThe last one about S-200 is perhaps unlikely as it would be a major change that will have an impact on the flight characteristics of the vehicle. Moreover, S-200 has a greater diameter than S-139 (3.2m vs 2.8m). What we have heard so far from ISRO sources are inert mass reduction, increased propellant load and increased thrust in CUS, and the thrust upgrade for Vikas engines.