Chandrayaan I payload team head recounts India’s first moon mission

Demonstrating some of those extraordinary images that included the highest special resolution data acquired by any country,A S Kiran Kumar,who headed the team which built the Terrain Mapping Camera (TMC),one of India’s key payloads on Chandrayaan-I,was in the city to address the audience on the country’s first moon mission. The talk was organised by the Pune chapter of the Indian Society of Remote Sensing(ISRS) at Muktangan Exploratory Science Centre. Vivek Kale,Chairman ISRS and Pramod Kale Chairman,Muktangan Exploratory Science Centre were also present.

Briefing the audience on the machinery of the satellite and the orbit details,Kumar showed several pictures taken at various distances and angles. “The systematic coverage of the lunar surface for digital elevation model generation is achieved by 5 m stereo images acquired by Chandrayaan I. Instruments such as the terrain mapping camera to create detailed catagraphic mapping and hyperspectral imager collects data in 64 wave lengths for chemical analysis. We aim to understand lunar surface composition,crater formation,find the minerals,existing magnitude to create detailed cartographic mapping and all the features that are being preserved on the moon,” said Kumar.

Calling it a mission with international collaboration,Kumar also spoke on sharing the data internationally and among institutions. “We had 11 payloads in all,of which five are from India and the rest are either from foreign countries or made in association with them. We would like to make more data accessible to as many institutions as possible so that they can carry their own research and analysis,” he added.

Kumar also highlighted on the mission’s abilities,including setting up a communication link and going beyond GSO. He said,“Most crucial was to ensure that it goes round the moon; it is now placed in a circular orbit at a distance of 100 km from the lunar surface. It was greatly satisfying to see it happening with efforts and hard work of the teams since 2003. The same team is working on Chandrayan II,set to be launched in 2012. We are definitely going to have a colony one day,but to predict the day I am as unsure as you all.”