India’s Chandrayaan 2 Spacecraft Enters Lunar Orbit

Eddie Gonzales Jr. – MessageToEagle.com – The Indian Express reports that Chandrayaan-2, India’s second lunar exploration mission, has been successfully placed in the orbit of the Moon on Tuesday, August 20.

After four weeks in space (since its launch on July 22), India’s Chandrayaan-2 spacecraft has raised its orbit five times from July 23 to August 6.

India's Moon mission

The Lunar Orbit Insertion (LOI) maneuver was successfully completed at 9.02 am as planned, ISRO informed.

The spacecraft will touch down on the Moon’s surface on September 7.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated the team of ISRO, saying the latest maneuver was an “important step in the landmark journey to the Moon.

There will be four more orbit maneuvers to enable the spacecraft to enter into its final orbit passing over the lunar poles at a distance of about 100 km from Moon’s surface.

Subsequently, the Vikram lander will separate from the orbiter on September 2.

AFP cites ISRO chief K. Sivan saying that the maneuver was a key milestone for the mission, adding he was hoping for a perfect landing next month.

“On September 7, the lander will land on the moon. Whatever is humanly possible, has been done by us,” Sivan told reporters.

Tuesday’s insertion was one of the trickiest operations in the mission because if the satellite had approached the Moon at a higher velocity it would have bounced off and got lost in deep space.And had it approached at a slow velocity, the Moon’s gravity would have pulled it in, causing a crash.

According to ISRO, Chandrayaan2 will shed light on a completely unexplored region of the Moon, the South Pole.

Written by Eddie Gonzales Jr. – MessageToEagle.com Staff