Mars Mission Mangalyaan Shocker: India comes last but still defeats the toppers - US, Russia, Europe

Bangalore, Sept 24: India's mission Mars -- Mangalyaan entered the Mars orbit, the latest entrant. It created history on Wednesday, Sept 24. The fact, which shocked many, is that Mangalyaan is the cheapest mission for Mars so far.

Mangalyaan, which means "Mars craft" in Hindi, took off from the island of Shriharikota, off India's eastern coast, 10 months ago. The 3,000lb (1,350kg) device first headed for an elliptical orbit around Earth, after which a series of manoeuvres and short burns of its rocket engines sent it on towards Mars.

India defeated US, Russia, Europe, the other countries which had already placed their satellite on Mars orbit. While big Asian giants -- China, Japan failed to join them, India joined the elite club of Martian explorers with United States, European Space Agency and former Soviet Union.

Here are the comparative costs of travel to the red planet in recent years:

OneIndia News