New Delhi, September 25: Water does exist on lunar and it can be extracted but in less quantity, confirmed Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) chairman G Madhavan Nair on Friday. Indian spacecraft Chandrayaan’s historic discovery has given wings to the hopes about a permanent lunar base.
An elated Madhavan Nair said on the occasion that the Chandrayaan-1 was a complete success. “The Chandrayaan mission performed wonderfully. Earlier I said it had completed 95% of its mission objectives, today I say it has done 110%,” he quipped.
Speaking at a press conference, he elaborated on the path breaking discovery in the history of space expeditions. High quantities of water and Hydroxyl (HO) molecules were concentrated in Polar Regions where there is sunlight. They were not found in the form of a drop but embedded in the minerals that lay in the lunar surface. If extracted, one tone of mineral will yield nearly half a liter of water.
On the formation of water on moon, Madhavan Nair said initial assessment shows that solar winds gave and possibly meteors and asteroids that crash onto the moon surface account for it. Nevertheless, it doesn’t mean the presence of life on the moon. He also said that the data collected was enormous and would take a period of six months to three years to analyze it completely.
K. Radhaakrishnan, director of Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre in Thiruvananthapuram said that ISRO would be launching a Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV-D3) with an indigenous cryogenic stage and PSLV-C15 later this year.
Preliminary design of Chandrayaan-2, a sequel to the first successful unmanned lunar mission has been finished. The second mission, set for launch in 2012-13, will carry a land rover for moving about the lunar surface and pick up samples.
—Agencies