Cheers erupted early this break of day as India became the second nation in just two days to successfully slip a satellite into scope around the Red Planet . The investigation , unofficially nickname Mangalyaan ( for Mars craft ) , is thefifth craftto join the Mars party which currently include NASA ’s newly arrived MAVEN and three other orbiters : Mars Odyssey , Mars Reconnaissance and the ESA ’s Mars Express . Two NASA rovers , Opportunity and Curiosity , are also presently scamper across the open .
The Mars Orbiter Mission , or mama for light , start its interplanetary journeying on November 5 , 2013 , when it was launch from the Indian Space Research Organization ’s ( ISRO)Satish Dhawan Space Centeratop aPolar Satellite Launch Vehicle . Despite launching several days before MAVEN , it arrived shortly after the NASA craft .
perplex to Mars is no mean exploit , especially for a developing country . Out of51 attemptsto extend to the major planet so far , less than one-half have been successful . What makes India ’s achievement even more impressive is that this is only the 2d fourth dimension that a mission has arrived at Mars on a maiden voyage . The first grouping to achieve this was theEuropean Space Agencythat reached Mars on its first try back in 2003 .
“ Today not only has a ambition get true , but we have created story for India , for ISRO , and for the world,”said Vipparthi Adimurthyof the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology .
astonishingly , India achieved all of this under a tight budget . MAVEN come with a staggering$671 millionprice tag , and the ESA ’s Mars Express be $ 386 million . MOM set India back a slightly more low $ 74 million , but being careful has come with a few constraints . In particular , the amount of weight unit that the launch vehicle could carry was restricted , so the probe could n’t take as much fuel as would be desirable . This mean that the satellite has been squeeze to adopt an unusually elliptical orbit as there is deficient fuel to straighten it up .
Mangalyaan will now spend at leastsix monthsorbiting Mars , usingfivesolar - powered cat’s-paw to cumulate data on the planet . Three of them are dedicated to atmospherical observations that may cast lightness on the fade of H2O and other molecules from the atmosphere . The other two are optic and infrared camera that will be used to study the Martian surface and weather . MOM will also search for methane , a possible indicator of sure life history forms or geological processes . The team hope that the info gathered may help us better understand planetary formation and the account of Mars .
“ It ’s yet another origin of information,”said Roger Franzen , a technical syllabus director at the Australian National University ’s Research School of Astronomy and Astrophysics . “ Mars is bit by bit unveiling its secrets to skill and humanity , and the Amerind mission is yet another mean value of unveil this enigma that Mars presents . ”
[ ViaABC News , io9,ISROandBBC News ]
