The Indian Space Research Organisation on Wednesday announced that it plans to launch its lunar lander spacecraft Chandrayaan-2 during the week starting July 9 and expects a moon landing on September 6. The Chandrayaan-2 mission, a follow-up to the Chandrayaan-1 lunar orbiter mission in 2008, will involve landing a spacecraft near the lunar southpole and using a robotic rover to conduct short scientific excursions in this little explored lunar area. “All the modules are getting ready for Chandrayaan-2 launch during the window of July 9 to July 16 2019 with an expected moon landing on September 06 2019,” Isro said in a media release. The space agency plans to use a Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle to ferry the 3,290kg Chandrayaan-2. Studies through instruments designed by Indian and foreign scientists and placed aboard the Chandryaan-1 lunar orbiter had a decade ago helped scientists detect signatures of water molecules near the Moon’s polar regions.

Source: The Telegraph May 02, 2019 00:56 UTC