Former DRDO scientist backs ISRO over calling off Chandrayaan 2 launch

Pic courtesy: Reuters

Former Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) scientist Ravi Gupta has backed the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) over the decision to call off the launch of Chandrayaan 2 due to a technical snag.

Speaking to news agency ANI, former head of the Directorate of Public Interface at DRDO Ravi Gupta said that “it was the right decision to call off Chandrayaan 2 launch” as no chance should have been taken in “such a big mission”.

“We could not have taken any chance in such a big mission. Several rounds of testing are performed of every part. Every movement needs to be monitored at every second,” said Gupta.

The launch, which was slated to take place at 2.51 am on Monday – July 15, was called off almost an hour before the schedule after a technical snag was observed. The ISRO took to microblogging site Twitter to announce that a later date for the launch would be decided on later.

“A technical snag was observed in launch vehicle system at 1 hour before the launch. As a measure of abundant precaution, #Chandrayaan2 launch has been called off for today. Revised launch date will be announced later,” read the tweet.

Chandrayaan 2 was slated to be launched onboard heavy-lift rocket Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle - Mark III (GSLV Mk III), nicknamed as 'Baahubali'.

Chandrayaan 2, the most ambitious lunar mission of the country, will explore the parts of Moon which have never been explored in the past - the south polar region. According to eminent space scientists, Chandrayaan 2 is a mission which has been described as one of the most complex ever undertaken by ISRO.

The main objective of the latest Moon mission is to carry out various experiments to understand the extent and significance of the presence of water on the celestial body as confirmed by the Chandrayaan 1 mission. This is also for the first time that India is trying to land a robotic rover on Moon.