Chandrayaan-1 may be launched in September

{image-chandrayana 1_24072008.jpg news.oneindia.in}Bangalore, Jul 24: The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on Thursday, July 24 reaffirmed that its maiden lunar mission, Chandrayaan-I will take place in September.

The exact date of launch will be decided after taking stock of the mission's progress and induction of 'Thermos Vacus' in the satellite, ISRO Chairman G Madhavan Nair told here on the sidelines of a three day fifth International Conference on Smart Materials, Structures and Systems. "We may decide about the date during the meeting about launch of the Chandrayaan-I and if everything goes on well as per plan it should be launched in September", he added.

The 100 x 100 km Lunar Polar Orbit PSLV wouldinject 1050 kg satellite in 240 x 36000 km lunar orbit, with an orbital mass of 523 kg, including ascientific payload of 55 kg that had a two year life.

Success of lunar mission would be a step forward in expanding the scientific knowledge about the Moon, upgrading India's technological capability and providing challenging opportunities for planetary research for the younger generation.

UNI