Bengaluru: The second de-orbiting manoeuvre for Chandrayaan-2 spacecraft was performed successfully on September 4, beginning at 0342 hrs IST as planned, using the onboard propulsion system. The duration of the maneuver was 9 seconds, according to ISRO.
The orbit of Vikram Lander is 35 km x 101 km. Chandrayaan-2 Orbiter continues to orbit the Moon in an orbit of 96 km x 125 km and both the Orbiter and Lander are healthy. With this manoeuvre the required orbit for the Vikram Lander to commence its descent towards the surface of the Moon is achieved.
The Lander is scheduled to powered descent between 0100 – 0200 hrs IST on September 7, 2019, which is then followed by touch down of Lander between 0130 – 0230 hrs IST, says an update from ISRO.
The ₹978-crore Chandrayaan 2 was launched on July 22 from Sriharikota by India’s heavy lift rocket Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark III.
