The ambitious project Chandrayaan-1 will take off from Sriharikota Space Center in Andhra Pradesh on October 19. Weather permitting, the cuboid-shaped spacecraft will carry with it payloads of six foreign countries - the US, Britain, Germany, Sweden and Bulgaria - apart from those of India. The total weight of the spacecraft is 590 kg and it can carry 11 payloads.

 

Talking about sequel of Chandrayaan-1, P.R. Dasmunsi, Information and Broadcasting Minister said that the union cabinet in a meeting headed by India PM, has given its approval for undertaking lunar mission Chandrayaan-2 and upgrading the associated existing ground segment at a total cost of Rs.425 crores. Reports confirm that Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) will take Chandrayaan-1 to moon.

 

M. Annadurai, Director ISRO Satellite Centre in Bangalore said that ISRO has completed the integration of the satellite Chandrayaan-1. The Rs.4 billion project aims to study the moon and its mineral concentration, environment and radioactivity. Also, the study on atomic elements such as Radon, Uranium and Thorium too will be done. The Chadrayaan-1 spacecraft will be shipped this month only to the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota.