Chandrayaan in Shaastra

Chandrayaan, India's first moon mission is all set for launch in February next year. It is one of our Dr.APJ Abdul Kalam's visions. With successful launch of our satellite INSAT-4CR by Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV-F04), Chandrayaan project has gained momentum and gained lot of foreign participation and attention. This is the first time various agencies including National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and European Space Agency (ESA) work under a project headed by Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

So, what does this mean for a developing country like ours? What information is this craft going to provide which its predecessors like 'The Ranger' haven’t? What is the effort that is going into it?

Shaastra, the annual technical festival of IIT Madras scheduled from October 3 to 7, has answers to all these questions. It is the only ISO 9001:2000 certified student-organised event in the world. Shaastra is organising Chandrayaan workshop featuring lectures on the making of Chandrayaan and its scientific implications. It also has a four-hour panel discussion which includes eminent space scientists such as K.Kasturirangan, Jayati Datta and Annadurai from ISRO, India's first cosmonaut Rakesh Sharma and writer Jayant Narlikar.