India's tryst with destiny: 'Bahubali' puts Chandrayaan-2 into orbit | Highlights

Chandrayaan 2 Launch Live Updates: ISRO's much-awaited Chandrayaan 2 was successfully launched from a launchpad in Sriharikota at 2:43 pm today. Earlier, Chandrayaan 2 was set to be launched on July 15, however, the mission was aborted just 56 minutes before liftoff due to a technical snag. According to the sources from ISRO, there was a drop in pressure in the fuel tank and as a measure of abundant precaution, the Chandrayaan 2 launch was called off. The snag was later rectified and the liquid core stage of the GSLV was fully fueled for the planned launch this afternoon.

Here are the Highlights: 

04:55 pm: Home Minister Amit Shah congratulates the ISRO team over the successful launch of Chadrayaan-2

04:30 pm: Congress congratulates team ISRO for the successful launch of Chandryaan-2

03:27 pm: Prime Minister Narendra Modi posts series of tweets over the successful launch of Chandrayaan 2, says "The launch of Chandrayaan 2 illustrates the prowess of our scientists and the determination of 130 crore Indians to scale new frontiers of science."

03:16 pm: 

03:11 pm: Our work is yet not complete, we will work hard and ensure that the Indian flag flies high in the technology sector, say ISRO officials

03:09 pm: ISRO officials congratulate and credit the successful launch of Chandrayaan 2 to their team of scientists and other staff involved 

03:08 pm: 

03:06 pm: This is the beginning of India's historic journey, say ISRO officials as Chandrayaan 2 successfully launches from Sriharikota

03:05 pm: ISRO officials address media after the successful launch of Chandrayaan 2, say the lift-off was way better than our expectations

03:04 pm: GSLV Mk III-M1 successfully injects Chandrayaan 2 spacecraft into Earth Orbit

03:01 pm: Launch of India's historic moon mission Chandrayaan 2 successful

03:00 pm: With the launch of Chandrayaan 2, India will become the fourth country in the world to land on the lunar surface.

02:59 pm: All parameters of Chandrayaan 2 are working normally, says ISRO

02:55 pm: The liquid stage L110 has separated itself from the orbiter and other components

02:54 pm: Chandrayaan 2 is moving at a speed of 24 kms per second

02:51 pm: The heat shield has separated itself from the orbiter and other components

02:46 pm: 

02:43 pm: India's historic moon mission Chandrayaan 2 lifts off from Sriharikota

02:41 pm: Less than 5 minutes left for launch of India's historic moon mission Chandrayaan 2

02:38 pm: Vehicle director gives nod for launch for India's historic moon mission Chandrayaan 2 

02:35 pm: It is now only less than 7 minutes left for Isro to lift off Chandrayaan 2. The Chandrayaan 2 launch is being watched by a billion population across the country and hundreds at the Sriharikota station's viewing gallery.

02:33 pm: 

01:40 pm: Filling of Liquid Hydrogen in Cryogenic Stage(C25) of GSLV Mk III-M1 completed

01:19 pm: 

12:57 pm: Filling of liquid oxygen in cryogenic stage (C25) of GSLV Mk III-M1 completed and filling of liquid hydrogen is in progress

11:51 am: Filling of liquid oxygen for the cryogenic stage (C25) of GSLV Mk III-M1 commences

Where to watch Chandrayaan-2 launch live

ISRO will live stream the event on its Twitter and Facebook pages. Doordarshan will also stream the event live on its YouTube channel.

What is Chandrayaan 2

To put simply, Chandrayaan is an amalgamation of Chandra (Moon) and Yaan (vehicle). Chandrayaan-1 was India’s first unmanned mission which was launched in October 2008. Now, Chandrayaan 2 is the second unmanned mission and will launch after almost a decade since the first mission. 

What comprises Chandrayaan 2

There are 3 modules with Chandrayaan 2 - the Orbiter, Vikram Lander and Pragyan Rover. As per what the ISRO says, the Orbiter and Lander modules will be having a mechanical interface and will be stacked together as an integrated module inside the GSLV MK-III launch vehicle. Chandrayaan 2 will be carrying 14 payloads: 8 on the Orbiter, 3 on Lander and 2 on Rover. 

According to ISRO, the orbiter is tasked with mapping the lunar surface from an altitude of 100 kilometres. Meanwhile, the Vikram lander will make a soft-landing on the surface and release the Pragyan rover on 7 September 2019. 

The mission will go to a previously unexplored region just 650 kilometres from the lunar South Pole. This will be the first time any mission has touched down so far away from the equator.

Also Read | ISRO's Chandrayaan-2 launch at 2:43 pm today

Also Read | How and where to watch ISRO's second launch attempt for Chandrayaan-2

Video: India's historic moon mission Chandrayaan 2 lifts off from Sriharikota