Chandrayaan 2: Fourth orbit-raising of spacecraft performed successfully, ISRO confirms

The fourth earth-bound orbit-raising manoeuvre of the Chandrayaan 2 spacecraft has been successfully performed today on Friday evening, the Indian Space Research Organisation confirmed in a tweet. The manoeuvre was carried out at 3.27 pm IST using the onboard propulsion system for a firing duration of 646 seconds, a day after the third orbit-raising was completed, placing the spacecraft in a  277 x 89472 km orbit (nearest x furthest Earth-bound altitude),  according to ISRO. The final orbit achieved by the Chandrayaan 2 spacecraft after the third orbit-raising is 276 X 71,792 km. [caption id=“attachment_7053771” align=“alignnone” width=“1280”] Illustration of the orbit-raising of the Chandrayaan 2 spacecraft in its Earth-bound phase. Image: ISRO[/caption] ISRO also reported that all the spacecraft parameters were normal, and the fifth orbit-raising is scheduled for 6 August, Monday at about 2.30-3.30 pm IST.

#ISRO
Fourth earth bound orbit raising maneuver for #Chandrayaan2 spacecraft has been performed today (August 2, 2019) at 1527 hrs (IST) as planned.

More details please see https://t.co/lbI3ic8ADk

A view from Control Centre at ISTRAC, Bengaluru pic.twitter.com/R6S8utY7Mw

— ISRO (@isro) August 2, 2019

On 22 July, India  launched the country's second moon mission, Chandrayaan 2 , aboard the most powerful rocket in ISRO’s arsenal, the GSLV-MkIII-M1, from the spaceport of Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh. The mission was primarily aimed at landing a rover in the unexplored lunar south pole. The 3,850-kg, Rs 978-crore spacecraft is a three-module composite made up of an orbiter, lander, and rover. On its planned 48-day journey between liftoff and landing on the Moon’s South Pole, the composite will be subjected to a series of orbital manoeuvres to bring it to the moon’s vicinity.

#Chandrayaan2
Today marks the successful completion of the fourth orbit raising maneuver. The last Earth bound maneuver is planned on August 6, 2019#ISRO pic.twitter.com/45jy83UCrP

— ISRO (@isro) August 2, 2019

More from science

Careless Whispers: Scientists discover that plants can 'talk' to each other using smells Life on Mars? European Space Agency’s Orbiter discovers ice water deposits at equator

“Further major activities include Earth-bound manoeuvres, Trans Lunar Insertion, Lunar bound manoeuvres, Vikram Separation and Vikram Touch Down,” the space agency said.

As per ISRO’s schedule, the Vikram lander will attempt a soft-landing on the moon on  7 September, and open its hatch for the Pragyan rover to take its first few rolls onto lunar soil four hours later. The landing site of the mission is closer to the South Pole than any mission before it. ISRO said that the earth-bound manoeuvres are planned from 24 July onwards, culminating in the fifth and final orbit-raising on 14 August 2019, setting Chandrayaan 2 on its way to the moon. ISRO has called the mission its most complex and prestigious mission ever. If successful, Chandrayaan 2 will propel India to an elite list of four nations (including Russia, the US and China) that have pulled off a soft-landing on the moon.