Chandrayaan set to lift off tomorrow, countdown smooth

Chandrayaan-1 embarks on 2-year moon mission

With the final countdown progressing without any hitch today, India's maiden unmanned moon mission--Chandrayaan-I-- is all set to lift off tomorrow to launch a two-year space odyssey that will catapult the country into an exclusive club of moon-faring nations. The weather conditions over the Sriharikota spaceport were being closely monitored and officials said there is no chance of the launch being postponed unless a cylonic threat emerged, as the polar rocket that will put the spacecraft into lunar orbit was being fuelled.

"Everything is going in order. We are ready to launch on the dot," a space official said, as hundreds of scientists went through the 49-hour countdown drill with precision.

The 1,380 kg spacecraft would be put into orbit by India's home-grown rocket PSLV-C11 which is due to blast off at at 6.20 AM tomorrow from the second launch pad at Satish Dhawan Space Centre Associate Director(SDSC). The work on filling of propellant for the first stage of the polar launch vehicle had been completed and the second stage filling would be over tonight, SDSC Associate Director Dr M Y S Prasad told PTI here, 80 kms north of Chennai.

"The countdown, which started at 5.22 am yesterday, is progressing smoothly and the propellant filling of PS-2 (first stage) has been completed," he said adding a total of about 43 tonnes of propellant would be filled. Asked about weather conditions in this space port town, which is witnessing isolated rains, Prasad said the rains would not affect the launch.

"The rain does not matter as the spacecraft is fully rain proof. Even if it is drenched, the launch would take place as per schedule.

" However, the launch might have to be rescheduled if there was cyclonic weather conditions, he added.

If things go as planned, India's unmanned moon spacecraft -- Chandrayaan-1 -- embarks on a two-year mission tomorrow seeking to throw more light on earth's only natural satellite. Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) spokesman S Satish said the sky is overcast and there are heavy rains, but it is not a cause for worry.

A delay will happen only in case of a cyclone or lightning. Rains will not hamper the spacecraft's lift off, ISRO sources said.

"Only cyclone-related incidents and lightning could force a delay," the sources said. The lift-off is slated around 0620 hours on board indigenously-built rocket, PSLV-C11, from the spaceport of Sriharikota on the east coast in Andhra Pradesh, some 100 kms north of Chennai.

The event would mark India's entry into select band of lunar explorers -- the European Space Agency (ESA), Japan, China, the US and Russia which have undertaken moon missions. "Basically, this (Chandrayaan-1) is meant for a comprehensive mapping of the lunar surface," ISRO Chairman G Madhavan Nair told PTI. "Earlier missions (by others) focused on specific regions or looked at one aspect or other only.

It's for the first time (in the world) that we will have the entire lunar surface mapped up." Chandrayaan-1 is seen by some analysis as a move by India to catch up with Asian rivals China and Japan, and not lag behind in the race for moon.

Coupled with the "pride factor", Chandrayaan-1 would signal India's rising international stature, seen as a reflection of its space prowess as well as build on its technological capability to undertake inter-planetary missions in the coming years. PTI.