Heena Sharma Blog

  The Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro)'s PSLV-C50 lifted off successfully from the Sriharikota spaceport near Chennai. The rocket is carrying orbiting communication satellite CMS-01 (formerly GSAT-12R). The rocket lifted at 3:41 p.m. from the second launch pad at the rocket port in Sriharikota, in Andhra Pradesh. After about 20 minutes into its flight, it will eject CMS-01 into geosynchronous transfer orbit (GTO) and from there, the satellite will be taken up and positioned in the geosynchronous stationary orbit. The 44-metre-high four-staged engine, PSLV-C50, is the 22nd flight of PSLV in 'XL' configuration (with six strap-on motors hugging the first stage). It will be the 52nd mission for India's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV). Read More  

The ISRO on Wednesday announced that work on the country's third lunar mission, Chandrayaan-3 was on and the launch may shift to next year. The announcement comes a day after Union Minister Jitendra Singh said India will launch Chandrayaan-3 in 2020. Addressing a press conference here, ISRO chairman K Sivan said all activities related to the third lunar mission were going on smoothly. It will also have a lander, rover and a propulsion module like its predecessor, he said. On the cost of the project, Sivan said, "the mission would cost Rs 250 crore." The launch of Chandrayaan 3 may shift to next year, he said. Read More

Not losing hope, the Indian Space Research Organisation continued to make all-out efforts to establish link with Chandrayaan-2 's 'Vikram' lander, now lying on the lunar surface after a hard-landing. Vikram, with rover 'Pragyan' housed inside it, hit the lunar surface after communication with the ground-stations was lost during its final descent, just 2.1 km above the lunar surface, in the early hours of Saturday. "It had a hard-landing very close to the planned (touch-down) site as per the images sent by the on-board camera of the orbiter. The lander is there as a single piece, not broken into pieces. It's in a tilted position," an Isro official associated with the mission claimed on Monday. "We are making all-out efforts to see whether communication can be re-established with the lander," the official said. "An Isro team is the on the job at IsroTelemetry, Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC) here." Chandrayaan-2

India’s heaviest rocket GSLV Mk-III , nicknamed ' Bahubali ', lifted off successfully from Sriharikota on July 22. The rocket, which is carrying the Chandrayaan-2 mission, was originally planned to lift off on July 15, but the plan was aborted due to a technical glitch, that the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) said on Thursday its scientists had resolved. The rocket lifted off at 2:43 pm IST on Monday, July 22, from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) in Sriharikota, off the coast of Andhra Pradesh. The rocket is carrying a three-component 3,850-kg spacecraft consisting of an orbiter, lander and rover. Isro Chairman K Sivan called this a historic day for science and technology in India. “I am extremely happy to announce that GSLV-MKIII injected Chandrayaan-2 in the defined orbit which in fact is 6,000 KMS more, which is good.” “ The satellite has more life. It is the beginning of a historical journey for India to land on the moon’s south pole and explore