India heads to the Moon!

[WhiteCrow]

We like Space Races! India is surging ahead. They're probably ahead in terms of space terms of us in the UK.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7679818.stm

India launches first Moon mission
Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

The Chandrayaan 1 spacecraft is launched

India has successfully launched its first mission to the Moon.

The unmanned Chandrayaan 1 spacecraft blasted off smoothly from a launch pad in southern Andhra Pradesh to embark on a two-year mission of exploration.

The robotic probe will orbit the Moon, compiling a 3-D atlas of the lunar surface and mapping the distribution of elements and minerals.

The launch is regarded as a major step for India as it seeks to keep pace with other space-faring nations in Asia.

Indian PM Manmohan Singh hailed the launch as the "first step" in a historic milestone in the country's space programme.

"Our scientific community has once again done the country proud and the entire nation salutes them," Mr Singh said in a message.

The launch was greeted with applause by scientists gathered at the site.

The chief of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), Madhavan Nair, said it was a "historic moment" for the country.

"Today what we have charted is a remarkable journey for an Indian spacecraft to go to the moon and try to unravel the mysteries of the Earth's closest celestial body and its only natural satellite," Mr Nair said.

The BBC's Sanjoy Majumder in Delhi says there has been a lot of excitement about the event, which was broadcast live on national TV.

Competitive mission

An Indian-built launcher carrying the one-and-a-half-tonne satellite blasted off from Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, an island off the coast of Andhra Pradesh, at about 0620 local time (0050 GMT).

HAVE YOUR SAY This is a commendable achievement that every Indian should be proud of Suresh, Bangalore, India

One key objective will be to search for surface or sub-surface water-ice on the Moon, especially at the poles.

Another will be to detect Helium 3, an isotope which is rare on Earth, but is sought to power nuclear fusion and could be a valuable source of energy in future.

Powered by a single solar panel generating about 700 Watts, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) probe carries five Indian-built instruments and six constructed in other countries, including the US, Britain and Germany.

The mission is expected to cost 3.8bn rupees (£45m; $78m), considerably less than Japanese and Chinese probes sent to the Moon last year.

The Indian experiments include a 30kg probe that will be released from the mothership to slam into the lunar surface. The Moon Impact Probe (MIP) will record video footage on the way down and measure the composition of the Moon's tenuous atmosphere.

[Wayne]

Hasn't anybody the heart to tell them it's already been done before.

[Ralph]

I feel I must echo Carol's sentiments on a similar thread elswhere on the questionable use of resources. Correct me if I'm wrong but doesn't India have considerable poverty amongst many of it's people?

[WhiteCrow]

I get the feeling we do look at India as a backward almost third world country. But this is kind of highly unfair.

Someone asked me what India had given to the world of mathematics. The answer was "nothing". In Roman and Greek culture there was no concept of zero!

Joking aside, India has been a world leader in mathematics for years. They are a vibrant economy, they are booming in manufacturing, IT skills and obviously call centres. They do have poverty problems, but it's hard to mention a country at the moment which doesn't.

Part of this satellite launch is probably to show that India has an infrastructure of engineering excellence, and should be respected as such.

[Ralph]

They do have poverty problems, but it's hard to mention a country at the moment which doesn't.

But they're not all spending billions on retreading old ground on a trip to the Moon.

It's not about putting India down - it's about the fact that India has poverty that makes our poor on the welfare state look wealthy.

[WhiteCrow]

After the last couple of weeks why is anyone surprised that poverty can't be managed?

I think there is a time and place to talk about social injustices, but I'm not sure this is the place. Personally I'd rather see countries spend money on Moon shots than on defence projects. Why do some countries have huge military forces but poverty?

[Captain Tancredi]

If nothing else, all this Indian and Chinese interest in getting to the moon means that when we're all taking our holidays there, there should be some decent places to eat.

[WhiteCrow]

Both India and China are overcrowded - space on the Moon is dirt cheap - it's just a matter of getting there.

[WhiteCrow]

Another interesting article ...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/7685702.stm

The Hindu (newspaper) hoped that the mission would "catch the imagination of young Indian men and women who are to become tomorrow's pool of talented scientists, the lifeblood of such programmes".

"The Indian space agency is also looking at missions to Mars, to asteroids and comets, and even one to study the Sun. At the heart of such missions of space exploration is the ability to do good science," the newspaper said.

The Telegraph said "the significance of Chandrayaan-1 goes beyond national pride".

"This mission not only gives a measure of what scientists in India are capable of achieving, but also places their work in a global context. It is a matter of no less pride that other than the four indigenous instruments, the Chandrayaan-1 is carrying three made by the European Space Agency, two from Nasa and one from Bulgaria."

"Although it is impossible to predict the outcome, the journey to the moon might change people's lives radically. For one, it could unlock the mysteries of Helium-3, a rare source of nuclear energy."

I know there's a lot of debate about this - but good on India. Something like this will inspire people to become engineers, and hence increase the countries prosperity.

What do the UK kids aspire to be? Big Brother contestants, X-Factor winners or marry a footballer. No wonder the country is screwed.

The issue of Helium-3 by the way is HUGE. It's very rare on Earth, but the theory is it might be relatively abundant on the Moon because the Moon formed in a different way to the Earth.

So what? Well the availability of Helium-3 isotope could make a workable nuclear fusion reactor a possibility. If it is available, it would make even the huge efforts of putting a manned base on the Moon cost-effective. It's that big a deal.