Published 18:36 IST, September 19th 2019
Chandrayaan-2 Orbiter continues to perform science experiments: ISRO
ISRO tweets with latest update on Chandrayaan-2, says orbiter continuing to perform scheduled experiments and experts still trying to analyse the cause of loss
Had India’s first lunar lander, Vikram, successfully soft-landed on the Moon, it would have marked the history. However, the ISRO is still continuing its efforts to communicate with Chandrayaan-2 and keep us updated. Vikram lander had been recently located by the orbiter of Chandrayaan-2, but no communication with it yet. All possible efforts are being made to establish communication with the lander.
In its recent Tweet, ISRO stated -
Latest update by ISRO
There were latest updates on the Orbiter by ISRO on Thursday:
-All Payloads of orbiter are powered.
-Initial trials for orbiter Payloads are completed successfully.
-Performance of all orbiter Payloads is satisfactory
-The orbiter continues to perform scheduled science experiments to complete satisfaction
-A national-level committee consisting of academicians and ISRO experts are analysing the cause of communication loss with the lander.
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in its tweet also mentioned that the National committee of academicians and ISRO experts are analysing the cause of communication loss with Vikram Lander.
A retired senior ISRO official also said that ISRO (Indian Space Research Organization) will simulate various scenarios to find out why Vikram Lander failed to land smoothly on the moon's surface. According to him, ISRO has to see whether any simulation prior to the launch was overlooked. The simulation will include what it had not done and what it had assumed to arrive at the probable cause of its moon lander Vikram hitting the lunar surface after veering away from its plotted path and losing communication.
NASA's efforts to communicate with Vikram Lander
In a bid to help ISRO communicate with 'Vikram Lander' which is currently on the lunar surface, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), on Friday, began sending radio signals to Vikram Lander, as revealed by Astronomer Scott Tilley. As shared by Tilley in a series of tweets, NASA's Deep Space Network (DSN) has been beaming radio frequency to Vikram Lander. ISRO too is constantly trying to establish communication with Vikram through its Indian Deep Space Network (IDSN) at Byalalu near Bengaluru. Tilley has also reported about the health of Chandrayaan 2 Orbiter which is currently orbiting the moon around 100km from the surface. This is being currently monitored by Tilley's own lab.
Updated 19:13 IST, September 19th 2019