Chandrayaan 2: ISRO announces successful injection of GSLV MK-III 'Bahubali' rocket into Earth orbit after liftoff from Sriharikota

Celebrating the successful launch of India's lunar mission Chandrayaan-2, Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), on Monday, announced the successful takeoff of its indigenous GSLV MK-III rocket- 'Bahubali' at 2:43 PM and its successful injection into the Earth Orbit

 Here was the moment of liftoff:

Announcing the successful separation of the L-10 and S200 rockets from the main rocket, Chandrayaan 2 mission has successfully reached desired altitude an velocity:

Chandrayaan-2's rocket lifted off at the scheduled time of 2:43 PM on July 22. The average distance between the Earth and the Moon is 3, 84, 000 km. Vikram lander will land on Moon on the 48th day of the mission starting from Monday. This moon-lander and rover mission proves that India is taking lead in space exploration as its mission aims to investigate the unexplored south pole of the moon. With Chandrayaan-2 India aims at the soft landing on the Moon. If successful, it will be the fourth country after the US, Russia, and China to do so.

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What is Chandrayaan 2, why is it important? 

Chandrayaan 2 is an Indian lunar mission that will boldly go where no country has ever gone before — the Moon's south polar region, as explained by ISRO. With this achievement, India becomes the fourth country after the US, Russia and China to land a probe on the lunar surface. India's Rs.960 crore lunar rocket 'Chandrayaan 2' launched at 2:43 PM on July 22 from ISRO's launch base - Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.

Here are the five points that make Chandrayaan-2 special:

• 1st space mission to conduct a soft landing on the Moon's south polar region
• 1st Indian expedition to attempt a soft landing on the lunar surface with home-grown technology
• 1st Indian mission to explore the lunar terrain with home-grown technology
• 4th country ever to soft-land on the lunar surface
• 1st planetary planetary mission headed by women directors

What does Chandrayaan-2 aim to do?

ISRO says that Chandrayaan-2 will attempt to soft-land on the Moon's surface, the aim is to make lander -Vikram and rover- Pragyan in a high plain between two craters, Manzinus C and Simpelius N, at a latitude of about 70° south.

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What comprises Chandrayaan 2?

Chandrayaan 2 has two main components - Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) 'Bahubali' rocket and the Lunar module (orbiter, Lander 'Vikram' and rover 'Pragyan').

• Bahubali - The 640-tonne GSLV Mk-III rocket stands 43 meters tall and has three stages for initial thrust, core booster, and cryogenic engine.
• Lunar orbiter - The orbiter with eight payloads weighing 2310 kg, will orbit the moon with a lunar orbit of 100 km
• Lander 'Vikram' - Named after India's space pioneer Vikram Sarabhai with four payloads, Vikram will land on the moon after separating from the orbiter and descend slowly up to 30km for a soft landing.
• Rover 'Pragyan'- The six-wheeled rover with two payloads, will roam on the moon's surface