Chandrayaan-2 Launch Delayed – Race to the Moon – India vs. Israel
The much anticipated Chandrayaan-2 mission which was scheduled for October, this year, has been postponed. The new launch schedule has stated that the mission will commence in December, according to ISRO. The mission was originally scheduled for April 23 this year. It is the second time that this launch has been postponed.
Moreover, Israel has also joined the game. They are planning to launch a moon mission in December. It will be a race between Tel Aviv and New Delhi. It will be for the honour of the fourth position in the world to land on the moon. Until now, the US, Russia and China are the only countries that have been able to soft-land its spacecraft on the moon’s surface.
Compared to the Chandrayaan I, the Chandrayaan II is a much more complex mission. The Chandrayaan I was just an orbiter. This mission involves an orbiter, a lander and a rover. The rover will walk and analyse the content of the lunar surface.
This is India’s most challenging mission to date. So, ISRO is taking its time to fix all the glitches. The two recent satellite mission failures have kept ISRO on its toes.
The weight of the Chandrayaan II has increased. Thus, the GSLV Mk III or ISRO’s ‘fat boy’ will now carry the spacecraft. It has the lifting capacity of over four tonnes. The earlier plan stated that the MK II would be carrying the craft. But it had just three tonnes lifting capability.
Israel’s nonprofit organization SpaceIL and Israel Aerospace Industries will launch its mission to the moon at the end of the year. The mission involves a 1300 pound lander. This will be propelled an Elon Musk owned, SpaceX Falcon9 Rocket. Its primary payload is a communications satellite. The craft will stay in orbit for approximately two months before landing.
Will it be the Chandrayaan II that beats Israel’s craft or the other way around? What do you think?
Well explained.