Chandrayaan-2 Launch called off for today due to 'technical snag', ISRO to announce revised launch date later

As per sources the countdown to Chandrayaan-2 lift off has been stopped. However no reasons have been stated for the same.

You can tune into IndiaTV for Live Chandrayaan 2 launch and updates on your TV.

For all details on Live Streaming read | Chandrayaan 2 Launch Live Streaming: When and where to watch India's second moon mission

India's historical moment is still about 2 hours away but England has created history in Lord's cricket ground by winning the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup.

In an absolute humdinger of a match which went right to the wire, England won the World Cup for the first time in extraordinary circumstances, beating New Zealand by a tiebreaker of boundaries scored after the match was tied after regulation play and then the first Super Over in the tournament's history.

Read More | 2019 World Cup Final: England outsmart New Zealand in thrilling encounter to lift maiden title at Lord's

1. 'One day on the Moon lasts as long as 29.5 Earth days.'
2. Solar energy will be used by both the lander and the rover to generate electricity.

For more interesting facts on Chandrayaan-2 launch read | Chandrayaan 2: Ten interesting facts about India's ambitious lunar mission

Chandrayaan-2 Timeline

For the first time in India's history, a space mission is being led by two women scientists -- Vanitha Muthayya and Ritu Karidhal. The former is heading the mission and the latter is the mission director.

For more unique facts about Chandrayaan-2 read | Chandrayaan-2: How India’s second lunar mission is unique, and how it's getting us excited

What makes Chandrayaan-2 special?

1) This will be the first time India will carry out a 'soft landing' on the Moon.

2) For the first time in India's history, a space mission is being led by two women scientists -- Vanitha Muthayya and Ritu Karidhal. 

3) This is the first Indian expedition to attempt a soft landing on the lunar surface with home-grown technology.

4) India is the fourth country ever to soft land on lunar surface.

Here's some exclusive, behind-the-scenes footage of the mission's various components coming together:

ISRO is working on a total of seven interplanetary missions over the coming decade. Among the destinations are Mars, the Moon, Venus, the Sun's corona and interplanetary space to study space. 

The Moon is the closest cosmic body on which space discovery can be attempted and documented. It is also a promising test bed to demonstrate the technologies required for deep-space missions. Chandrayaan 2 attempts to foster a new age of discovery, increase our understanding of space, stimulate the advancement of technology, promote global alliances, and inspire a future generation of explorers and scientists.

A lunar day or night lasts 14 Earth days. This results in extreme surface temperature variations. Additionally, the ambient pressure of the lunar surface is a hard vacuum. This makes the lunar surface a dangerous environment for lander and rover operations.

ISRO is now embarking on one of the most complex missions since its inception - that of launching Chandrayaan 2", says K Kasturirangan, former Chairman of ISRO. Hear more about what he has to say in this video:

Did you know that it takes 50 days to integrate the GSLV Mk-III? A Rajarajan, Director of the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, goes into interesting mission facts. 

Take a glimpse of Chandrayaan-2 Orbiter in clean room. It carries 8 scientific payloads for mapping lunar surface and to study moon's atmosphere

You can tune into IndiaTV for Live Chandrayaan 2 launch and updates on your TV. Just in case you are not near a Television set, you can watch Chandrayaan 2 launch Live on:

LIVE TV

YOUTUBE

How can I track Chandrayaan-2 launch through social media?

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How can I watch Chandrayaan-2 launch live streaming online:

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will be live streaming the Chandrayaan-2 launch on its Twitter and Facebook page. 

For Live Streaming of Chandrayaan 2 launch on ISRO Facebook, Click here

For Chandrayaan 2 launch Live Streaming on ISRO Twitter, Click here

Unlike Chandrayaan-1, Chandrayaan-2 will attempt to soft land its Vikram module on the lunar surface and deploy a six-wheeled Rover, Pragyaan on the Moon to carry out several scientific experiments. The lift-off mass of Chandrayaan-1 was 1380 kg while Chandrayaan-2 weighs 3850 kg.

The Orbiter carries eight scientific payloads for mapping the lunar surface and study the exosphere (outer atmosphere) of the Moon. The Lander carries three scientific payloads to conduct surface and subsurface science experiments. The Rover carries two payloads to enhance our understanding of the lunar surface. A passive experiment from NASA will also be carried onboard Chandrayaan-2.

Some of the technological challenges of this mission are:

• The propulsion system consisting of throttleable engines to ensure landing at low touch down velocity
• Mission management - propellant management at various stages, engine burns, orbit and trajectory design
• Lander Development - Navigation, guidance and control, sensors for navigation and hazard avoidance, communication systems and lander leg mechanism for soft landing
• Rover Development - Roll down (from the lander) mechanism, roving mechanism (on the lunar surface), development and testing of power systems, thermal systems, communication and mobility systems.

On July 16, 1969, the Apollo 11 spacecraft blasted into space. The Chandrayaan-2 launch is taking place in the same week as the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission. The Apollo 11 mission placed humans on the moon for the first time. Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin made history by becoming the first men to walk on the moon. 

Here's what ISRO says:

• Expand India's footprint in space
• Inspire a future generation of scientists, engineers and explorers
• Surpass international aspirations

VIKRAM PAYLOADS:

Radio Anatomy of Moon Bound Hypersensitive Ionosphere and Atmosphere (RAMBHA)

Chandra's Surface Thermo-Physical Experiment (ChaSTE)

Instrument for Lunar Seismic Activity (ILSA)

PPRAGYAAN PAYLOADS:

Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectrometer (APXS)

Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscope (LIBS)

PASSIVE EXPERIMENT:

Laser Retroreflector Array (LRA)

ORBITER PAYLOADS:

Terrain Mapping Camera 2 (TMC 2)

Orbiter High Resolution Camera (OHRC)

Imaging IR Spectrometer (IIRS)

Dual Frequency Synthetic Aperture Radar (DFSAR)

Chandrayaan 2 Atmospheric Compositional Explorer 2 (CHACE 2)

Dual Frequency Radio Science (DFRS) experiment

15th August, 2003: Chandrayaan programme is announced by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee

22nd October, 2008: Chandrayaan 1 takes off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota

8th November, 2008: Chandrayaan 1 enters a Lunar Transfer Trajectory

14th November, 2008: The Moon Impact Probe ejects from Chandrayaan 1 and crashes near the lunar South Pole — confirms presence of water molecules on Moon's surface

28th August, 2009: End of Chandrayaan 1 programme

Chandrayaan-2 will be the first space mission to conduct a soft landing on the moon's south polar region. It also is the first Indian expedition to attempt a soft landing on the lunar surface with home-grown technology. Chandrayaan-2 will be the first Indian mission to explore the lunar terrain with home-grown technology. India will be the fourth country ever to soft land on the lunar surface.

ISRO says moon provides the best linkage to earth's early history, offering an undisturbed historical record of the inner solar system environment. Extensive mapping of lunar surface to study variations in lunar surface composition is essential to trace back the origin and evolution of the Moon. Evidence for water molecules discovered by Chandrayaan-1, requires further studies on the extent of water molecule distribution on the surface, below the surface and in the tenuous lunar exosphere to address the origin of water on Moon.

The lunar South Pole is especially interesting because of the lunar surface area here that remains in shadow is much larger than that at the North Pole. There is a possibility of the presence of water in permanently shadowed areas around it. In addition, South Pole region has craters that are cold traps and contain a fossil record of the early Solar System. Chandrayaan-2 will attempt to soft land the lander -Vikram and rover- Pragyan in a high plain between two craters, Manzinus C and Simpelius N, at a latitude of about 70° south.

Many people must be thinking why are we going to the moon, or what does India attempt to do with the Chandrayaan-2 launch. Well, the moon is the closest cosmic body at which space discovery can be attempted and documented. It is also a promising test bed to demonstrate technologies required for deep-space missions. Chandrayaan-2, which is India's second unmanned moon mission, attempts to foster a new age of discovery, increase our understanding of space, stimulate the advancement of technology, promote global alliances, and inspire a future generation of explorers and scientists. 

Chandrayaan-2, India's second lunar mission, is all set to be launched on July 15 at 2:51 am. The lunar mission will go where no country has ever gone before - the moon's south polar region. The 20-hour countdown for the lift-off of India's heavy rocket nicknamed Bahubali, carrying Chandrayaan-2, began at 6:51 am on Sunday.