Updates New boy around the Red Planet - the 2013 Indian Mars Orbiter update thread!

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One of the most surprising and unexpected planetary mission to be launched this year comes from a nation with few experience in the planetary exploration arena.

No this is not a joke: the Indians are sending a Mars orbiter late this year!

Or at least that is what they are claiming (there isn't a lot of information about it yet), since the current information indicates a very short spacecraft integration and testing timeline to meet the next Mars launch window in October - November 2013. Nevertheless, their spacecraft (probably will be named Mangalyaan, or Mars-craft in Hindi)is quite modest (with linkage to the rather successful Chardrayaan-1 lunar orbiter that flew in 2008) and the missions are not that difficult (the orbit chosen is a high elliptical one, and most of the instruments are self-built versions of cameras/spectrometers similar to those that has been flown on other Mars orbiters, although an interesting one is a methane sensor that will search for traces of life on the Red Planet) that there might be some chances of success and greatly expanding the experience of operating a planetary probe for this rising space power.

If everything goes optimistically, the 1300 kg spacecraft will be launched late this year and arrive at Mars in September 2014 (though I am still skeptical that they can make the 2013 launch window). If nothing else, it will show that India is able to contribute to the exploration of the solar system too.

More updates will be put here when they become available.

References: http://www.planetary.org/blogs/emily-lakdawalla/2013/01040907-isro-mars-update.html

http://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=29440.0

20120927_mangalyaan.jpg
 
Last edited:
I don't know. Short test periods have eaten other Mars probes in the past. We'll see what happens.
 
wehaveaproblem said:
On being ready in time, or being successful overall?

No idea if they can get it ready in time, but if they do I'd give them fair to good odds of success. Good luck to them.
Click to expand...

Hmmm, odds on

-Making it off the ground
-Achieving SECO
-TMI???

I mean, I didnt think they even had the capacity to send probes to geostationary, much less mars orbit.
 
BruceJohnJennerLawso said:
I mean, I didnt think they even had the capacity to send probes to geostationary, much less mars orbit.
Click to expand...

Really? so how do they pull off Chardrayaan-1 which is actually mentioned in the FIRST POST?

I'd call 3,400 orbits of the moon, A. Successful and B. way past geo-stationary.

Chardrayaan-1 will have given them a lot of useful information to build a Mars probe. Getting there is a matter of doing the math which they have already proven they can do. If they can make the launch window I'll give them very good odds of making it to Mars.
 
Obviously the probability of this probe succeeding is inversely proportional to the hunger of the Great Galactic Ghoul. ;)
 
Interesting, especially since India would beat China with a Mars probe (never rely on Russian engineering).

I'm quite confident they make it, they were able to build a moon orbiter, so the technologic step to a Mars orbiter is not that huge. And since the PSLV has 18 consecutive launches without a failure I would call the launch vehicle reliable.
Only problem could be the deadline they're working towards and that they don't have the time for testing...

On another note: Wiki states the costs of the project are only $83 million:blink:
 
garyw said:
Really? so how do they pull off Chardrayaan-1 which is actually mentioned in the FIRST POST?

I'd call 3,400 orbits of the moon, A. Successful and B. way past geo-stationary.

Chardrayaan-1 will have given them a lot of useful information to build a Mars probe. Getting there is a matter of doing the math which they have already proven they can do. If they can make the launch window I'll give them very good odds of making it to Mars.
Click to expand...

Sorry didnt notice. I would still say the odds of success seem a little low, especially if the prep time is short.
 
MattBaker said:
Interesting, especially since India would beat China with a Mars probe (never rely on Russian engineering).

I'm quite confident they make it, they were able to build a moon orbiter, so the technologic step to a Mars orbiter is not that huge. And since the PSLV has 18 consecutive launches without a failure I would call the launch vehicle reliable.
Only problem could be the deadline they're working towards and that they don't have the time for testing...

On another note: Wiki states the costs of the project are only $83 million:blink:
Click to expand...

I think that's because the Chinese are focused on the Moon. They now have a plan to launch a Mars orbiter in 2018, which is one year after the Chinese lunar sample return mission!

One major problem is that this mission and the timeline is bundled in political mangling (see here for details), and this is not good at all from an engineering perspective. Plus I can see from their rocket failures that they have a serious management problem within the space agency. These are the problems that need to be addressed before I can be optimistic.
 
garyw said:
Really? so how do they pull off Chardrayaan-1 which is actually mentioned in the FIRST POST?

I'd call 3,400 orbits of the moon, A. Successful and B. way past geo-stationary.

Chardrayaan-1 will have given them a lot of useful information to build a Mars probe. Getting there is a matter of doing the math which they have already proven they can do. If they can make the launch window I'll give them very good odds of making it to Mars.
Click to expand...

Getting it there is one thing. Keeping it alive and useful is another, and a Mars trip has some considerations that a lunar trip doesn't.
 
I give it low chance - it will end up like Nozomi. Of course, I want to be mistaken.
 
Well it's time to bump this thread as the launch is now planned on October 28 at 10:45 GMT! The spacecraft has just been transported to the launch site (no this is correct - those Indians are processing the spacecraft just like any other communication satellite!)

I'll put up some materials on the mission later on, but here's the spacecraft late last month:

ISRO_MOM.jpg


ISRO_MOM2.jpg


ISRO_MOM3.jpg


ISRO_MOM4.jpg


ISRO_MOM5.jpg


ISRO_MOM6.jpg


ISRO_MOM7.jpg
 
Personally, I give them better-than-even odds of making it.
Good luck to them! And don't forget to :hailprobe:!!!
 
As a citizen of another country at the same stage of economic development, but which can't put a single CubeSat into orbit on its own, I envy the Indians.
 
How do they track and guide the craft once it is on its way to Mars?
 
They appear to have the accepted amount of gold foil on it. I predict success.
 
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