The originally Chinese plan to send a spacecraft to Mars has taken Asia by storm and has lit the stakes for an Asian space race. The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) are now making their final preparations to send a craft to the red planet.
The main aim is to test India's technology to see if it is worthy of interplanetary exploration. Another reason is to collect scientific information about the planets atmosphere and terrain. The Mangalyaan probe was meant to be sent up next Monday but unfortunately bad weather conditions have postponed the launch until next week. The launch window closes on the 19th of November.
If the mission succeeds it will be the fourth space agency to send a probe to Mars after the USA, Russia and UK. India's mission to Mars will be launched from it's space port in Sriharikata on the coast of the Bay of Bengal using their PSLV rocket which has successfully undertaken 21 flights including the unmanned Chanrayaan probe to the moon which proved that there was a reliable source of water on the moon.
The Indian government has set aside $41m for the mission, with the total cost for the mission will be $100m. Critics of the mission are saying the government is being profligate after two massive power failures and a drought from the monsoon rains.
The government says that the probe will be placed in orbit around Mars while carrying 25kg of equipment on board
On the 29th October, the $2.5bn American rover, Curiosity, will touch down on the Red Planet.
The first Chinese rover, Yunghuo 1, failed to touch down and blew up with a simalar event with the Russian probe Phobos Grunt which was launched alongside. However, India is marching ahead in the Asian Space Race, and who knows what will happen next.
The main aim is to test India's technology to see if it is worthy of interplanetary exploration. Another reason is to collect scientific information about the planets atmosphere and terrain. The Mangalyaan probe was meant to be sent up next Monday but unfortunately bad weather conditions have postponed the launch until next week. The launch window closes on the 19th of November.
If the mission succeeds it will be the fourth space agency to send a probe to Mars after the USA, Russia and UK. India's mission to Mars will be launched from it's space port in Sriharikata on the coast of the Bay of Bengal using their PSLV rocket which has successfully undertaken 21 flights including the unmanned Chanrayaan probe to the moon which proved that there was a reliable source of water on the moon.
The Indian government has set aside $41m for the mission, with the total cost for the mission will be $100m. Critics of the mission are saying the government is being profligate after two massive power failures and a drought from the monsoon rains.
The government says that the probe will be placed in orbit around Mars while carrying 25kg of equipment on board
On the 29th October, the $2.5bn American rover, Curiosity, will touch down on the Red Planet.
The first Chinese rover, Yunghuo 1, failed to touch down and blew up with a simalar event with the Russian probe Phobos Grunt which was launched alongside. However, India is marching ahead in the Asian Space Race, and who knows what will happen next.