Chandrayaan 2 LIVE: India Set To Script History With ISRO's Moon Mission, Latest Updates Here

PM Narendra Modi congratulated ISRO and the nation for the historic achievement of launching Chandrayaan 2.

Visuals of PM Modi during the successful launch of Chandrayaan 2.

ISRO releases stunning photos of the Chandrayaan 2 launch:

ISRO is set to launch its moon mission Chandrayaan-2, at the scheduled time of 2:43 PM on July 22. 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 US, Russia and China to do so.

ISRO had previously attempted a launch on July 15 but had to be called off due to technical snag observed in the launch vehicle system at T-56 minutes.

Why a moon mission?

ISRO is undertaking an ambitious moon mission.ISRO has been quoted saying that the Moon is the closest cosmic body at which space discovery can be attempted and documented. With Chandrayaan 2, ISRO says that it attempts to foster a new age of discovery, increase our understanding of space, stimulate the advancement of technology, promote global alliances, and inspire a future generation of explorers and scientists.

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' is all set and currently prepping for its journey to the south pole of the moon, launching 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.

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

What and when was Chandrayaan 1 launched? 

India's first spacecraft orbiting around the Moon at a height of 100 km from the lunar surface for to do chemical, mineralogical and photo-geologic mapping of the Moon. The spacecraft carried 11 scientific instruments built in India, USA, UK, Germany, Sweden, and Bulgaria. The satellite made more than 3400 orbits around the moon and the mission was concluded when the communication with the spacecraft was lost on August 29, 2009. 

Launch Countdown for Chandrayaan 2 begins: 

Fuel filling in core stage completed:

ISRO updates on the mission. On the wee hours of D-day, it said that the filling of N204 for the liquid core stage (L110) has been completed.

Visitors throng at Satish Dhawan Space Centre as India countdowns to Chandrayaan 2 mission.

Here's what experts are saying about the potential gains from the launch and operation of Chandrayaan 2 mission.

Chandrayaan 2 blasts off from Sriharikota.

More visuals below:

Chandrayaan 2 mission is successful. The GSLVMkIII-M1 has successfully injected  Chandrayaan 2 spacecraft into earth orbit. Visuals below:

ISRO receives first signal from Chandrayaan 2.

Chandrayaan 2 is in geostationary orbit.

ISRO Chief gives a speech after the successful launch of Chandrayaan 2.

""Extremely happy to announce that the GSLVMkIII-M1 successfully injected Chandrayaan 2 spacecraft into Earth Orbit. It is the beginning of a historic journey of India towards moon and to land at a place near South Pole to carry out scientific experiments," he said.