Sky & Telescope - USA (2019-11)

NEWS NOTES

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ON JULY 22ND, INDIA’S ambitious

Chandrayaan 2 — an all-in-one mission

that includes an orbiter, lander, and

rover — lifted off for the Moon.

The spacecraft follows in the foot-

steps of the successful Chandrayaan 

orbiter, which launched in October

2008 and orbited the Moon for nearly a

year. That mission deployed an impact

probe to the lunar south pole and found

direct evidence of water ice.

Chandrayaan 2 (Hindi for “moon-

craft”) is due to return to the south

pole, this time with a soft landing on

a plain between the Simpelius N and

Manzinus C craters. China’s Chang’e 

also landed in the south polar region

but on the farside.

As of early August, the Indian Space

Research Organisation (ISRO) reports

that the spacecraft has completed fi ve

maneuvers to successively raise its orbit

around Earth. On August 14th, it left

orbit around our planet and headed for

the Moon. Lunar capture is expected

in late August. Chandrayaan 2 will

eventually attain an orbit that takes

it 100 kilometers (60 miles) above the

lunar surface. Using a high-resolution

camera, it will map the proposed

landing site and other specifi c areas of

interest. Other instruments aboard the

orbiter will characterize the composi-

tion, temperature, and other properties

of the lunar surface.

The Vikram (Sanskrit for “valor”)

lander will detach from the orbiter and

head toward the lunar surface for a

September 7th landing. If all goes well,

engineers will instruct Vikram to deploy

a small rover named Pragyan (San-

skrit for “wisdom”). The solar-powered

lander and rover will arrive near lunar

sunrise. They’re expected to last until

local sunset two weeks later, although

there are plans to try and wake them

both up after the long lunar night. The

primary mission of the orbiter should

last one year.

The mission will study water ice near

the lunar south pole. Vikram carries

a seismometer, thermal probe, and an

instrument to monitor electron density

and temperature near the lunar surface.

The lander also carries a small laser

retro-refl ector, supplied by NASA. The

Pragyan rover includes a laser and X-ray

spectrometer to analyze lunar regolith,

along with navigational cameras.

If all goes well, Chandrayaan 2 will

make India the fourth nation to land

softly on the Moon.

■ DAVID DICKINSON

SPACE

Chandrayaan 2 Heads to the Moon

ASTRONOMY & SOCIETY

Protestors Block Thirty Meter Telescope Construction

ON JULY 10TH, HAWAIIAN Governor

David Ige and Thirty Meter Telescope

(TMT) offi cials announced that con-

struction of the $1.4 billion, 18-story

megatelescope would begin. Shortly

thereafter, roughly 1,000 Native Hawai-

ian activists blockaded the mountain’s

access road, preventing the passage of

construction vehicles.

The protests have remained peace-

ful, even as 38 protestors, most of them

Native Hawaiian elders, were arrested

on July 17th. However, due to safety

concerns for both vehicles and pedes-

trians along the only road that ascends

to the summit, the directors of the

existing Maunakea Observatories took

the unprecedented move of shuttering

the telescopes on July 16th. The ensuing

four-week suspension marked the lon-

gest period that all telescopes have been

simultaneously offl ine. Protests are

tAn artist’s conception shows the Vikram

lander deploying the Pragyan rover on the

surface of the Moon.

8 NOVEMBER 2019 • SKY & TELESCOPE