Comments on: Manueuver Puts Chandrayaan in Deep Space

By: premchand vijayan

premchand vijayan — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 18:36:30 +0000

Hi Every one,
It requires a great amount of technical prowess,institutional support and financial muscle(Please don't compare with NASA Missions) to undertake a mission like this.yes,India does have millions of people living below Poverty line, but that that shouldn't obstruct our Scientists from undertaking a mission like this ,considering the following aspects.
Break through technologies being developed.
The pride it generates in every Indian.
Younger generation will be more tempted to learn about space,celestial bodies,rocketery,Defence,Communication etc etc which in-turn would help the India to become a Developed and powerful country.
Above all what if Chandrayan Radars help us discover Helium 3 Isotopes in Moon .In such a scenario the the entire project cose(~80 million USD) is minuscule compared to the benefits from such a discovery.
Also we should not forget the fact about the High precision PSLV being used for such a complex mission.The launch vehicle ejected Chandrayan into the orbit with such a text book precision that only few countries can achieve .

By: Raj

Raj — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 03:10:35 +0000

Poverty IS NOT an attitude problem… It is as real as it can get in India. Stop sweeping it under the carpet. You will know it when you have less than $1 a day to yourself. Try keeping you expenses under $1 in india for a month and then tell me if poverty is a attitude problem or not.

That said…

The cost of the mission is about US$100M… which if spent on poverty eradication programs will line the pockets of corrupt officials & politicians in India. So it is money reasonably well spent.

Those who criticize the mission should take a moment to think about the problems with Indian politics and the complexity and nature of poverty in India before opening their mouth (in this case before hitting the "submit" button).

Regardless…. Kudos to Indian scientists and India… who unlike the rich mid-east countries is spending the money on something worthwhile instead of spending on luxury hotels and man-made islands…. who these same people will rush to criticize too.

I apologize to those hearts who cry silently for the suffering of the poor in India… to whom the money spent on this project is due.

Alternatively… why can't the Indian government pledge to match spending on poverty eradication & agriculture to that it spends in its space programs???

By: harsha

harsha — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 05:40:28 +0000

Well said sagarika-poverty is AN ATTITUDE problem just like some people here have!!!When we have religious failed societies around us-give credit to india for being a shining light!!!!

By: Sagarika

Sagarika — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 06:03:28 +0000

I don't understand why people are becoming pessimistic about Indian poverty line. Rather they should become optimistic on such achievements (Chandrayaan-I). Poverty has nothing to do with Sci-fi projects. Indian poor will always remain poor as it's an attitude problem. At least, India is going to leave some base for future generations and if it finds any success on the moon, it won't be made limited only to Indians.

By: Chirag

Chirag — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 12:04:09 +0000

This moon mission is complete bulls**t. Vishnu, Sci-Fi Si are you for real? even if what you said were scientifically true, do you really think India, or anyone else for that matter could simply keep sending probes to the moon every month for mining? Come on guys…! This is an obvious 'display of power' by India, and for who's benefit? I think providing food and basic requirements for 300 million people is far more urgent and crucial than a foolhardy trip to the moon. And I am Indian btw. I think we – as a nation – have to seriously rethink out priorities right now.

Oh and btw, great article there about orbit raising maneuvers. Thanks.

By: Sci-Fi Si

Sci-Fi Si — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 00:46:25 +0000

Indeed Vishnu, if helium 3 can be processed on the moon it's worth about 4 billion USD per tonne.

It is estimated that there is enough helium 3 on the moon to power the entire Earth for over 2,000 years, nuclear fule with no nuclear waste – could save our planet.

Shame the Japs didn't find any water there though, but it still looks as though the space economy is heading in the right direction.

Congratulations on India's launch!

There are some interesting videos on the http://www.moonsociety.org website that are well worth watching.

By: Vishnu

Vishnu — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 14:13:58 +0000

Craig,

There are hidden treasures on the moon – it has millions of tonnes of Helium – 3 isotope – which is 100s of times more fissile and cleaner than Uranium. One of the motives of this mission is to find out how abundant that element is and its commercial viability of mining.

By: Craig T Record

Craig T Record — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 13:56:36 +0000

Could someone please tell me how humanity benfits from going to the moon again, other than nationalistic pride. I'm not being sarcastic. I would honestly like to know.

By: shoot

shoot — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 12:48:41 +0000

According to the real-time tracking data on n2yo.com, the Chandrayaan-1 reached its perigee of 301.8km at Tue, 28 Oct 2008 07:03 GMT, then its apogee of 37824.4km at Tue, 28 Oct 2008 12:40 GMT, so it's still in the 11-hour orbit? What's wrong with it?

By: Rajnish

Rajnish — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 11:24:31 +0000

Darthsedious,

Let us be magnanimous and give due credit to India and its scientists for joining the humanity's search for its place in the vast cosmos.

If every country had waited to wipe out all pockets of poverty on its land before before exploring the space, nothing would have happened by now. Yes India has a larger share of its poverty, but also has 300 million people whose income and lifestyle are comparable with any developed country. In the present economic meltdown, Indian economy is more stable and growing much faster unlike the economies of the large developed countries.

It is also not easy to deal with the problems of such huge population and steadily follow a democratic system.

By: darthsedious

darthsedious — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 02:39:06 +0000

while the moon expedition is the hoo haa of pride and glory for India , indeed many things remain the same – half of its population is in the poverty scope with some 300 million is far below the poverty line. Everyone would want to see a fully developed India with no social discrminations and poverty. If India can send a probe to the moon while almost 50% of it community is very poor – I wonder what India's capabalities and capacities on achieving greatness once it is fully a developed nation.

By: Vanamonde

Vanamonde — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 00:41:16 +0000

Wonderful! This is the article (and the graphic) I have been looking for every since I heard of this mission UT strikes again!

We love you.

By: looneytunes

looneytunes — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 14:04:48 +0000

yes, it would be nice to have high resolution moon maps of craters that google might have missed. plus india needs copyright-free copy of those maps like everyone else before the lunar colonies ban high resolution mapping of their spaceports, not to mention telescope viewing from the earth for security – after all, I can already see the moon from my window

can't help being absolutely intrigued by this wonderful new "liquid engine" … MHD in space?!

By: Huygens

Huygens — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 13:10:23 +0000

FYI – Pioneer 10 zipped past the orbit of the Moon in just 11 hours in 1972 on its way to Jupiter and eventually out of the Solar System into the Milky Way Galaxy.

By: Vamsi

Vamsi — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 11:51:01 +0000

Yes, by sending the Space-Craft in elliptical orbits saves a lot of fuel and thus saves the Project cost with a penalty of time to reach the destination. This is absolutely OK. Soon India is going to own high resolution and precision moon maps.

Thanks,
-Vamsi

By: dileep

dileep — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 06:18:43 +0000

Well……….pray for good to the man kind. I am sure that India can do much in space research. More over all the Indian people, even all the people in the world, looking for another good news that India can bring from moon and mars.

Wish all the success to the Indian scientist….ISRO….but don't be slow…once its decided to do..then do it fast…as much….

My best regards

By: Knowmonger

Knowmonger — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 04:49:26 +0000

Wow. Its amazing how people can figure out the wisdom in these highly complex motions. And yeah, NASA deserves this credit for their Pioneer and all. But again, humans are awesome.

Out of context but, I somehow can't wait for the next Chandrayaan-2 missions at the end of next year.

By: Scott

Scott — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 01:54:01 +0000

I really hope the Indian Government Finds more than any other space agency has on the moon.

Love and Peace

By: Chris

Chris — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 01:47:26 +0000

I'm thinking that when we sent men to the moon, they had to get there in the shortest possible time, which meant a more-or-less straight course. A robotic ship can take more time, which also might have a bearing on why they're doing it this way.

By: Jorge

Jorge — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 23:25:05 +0000

Well, Amit, that's exactly what fuel/payload considerations come down to. The price tag in space missions is intimately related to the weight of the spacecraft, which in turn largely depends on the amount of fuel it needs to maneouvre and the characteristics of the payload.

So the answer would indeed be "yes".

By: amit

amit — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 22:52:26 +0000

NO, this is done to make it the cheapest mission ever to moon, the mission with such maneuvering makes it just half the price of a Jumbo Jet Liner.

Why to kill an elephant with a cannon when you can do same with a gun!!!!!

By: Peter B

Peter B — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 22:11:47 +0000

Limited by fuel/payload considerations I suspect

By: Tyler Durden

Tyler Durden — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 19:29:04 +0000

Very nice article – I'd always imagined a launch to the moon as a straight shot, I'd never considered that orbital maneuvers this complicated could come into play.

Do you know if this indirect route is a matter of hardware limitations or small fuel supply?