India`s Mars probe performs third orbit raising manoeuvre

Zee Media Bureau\Philaso G Kaping Sriharikota: The third of the five orbit raising manoeuvres of Mars Orbiter spacecraft has been successfully completed early Saturday, the Indian Space Research Organisation said. The manoeuvre, which began at 02:10:43 hrs (IST), raised the apogee from 40186 kms to 71636 kms, with a burn time of 707 seconds. The first and second orbit-raising manoeuvres of the spacecraft were performed on November 7 and 8 respectively. India’s first interplanetary spacecraft was launched into an elliptical earth orbit onboard PSLV C 25 from Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR, on November 05, 2013. The 1,340-kg spacecraft will orbit earth for nearly a month before the final firing on December 1 which will send the Orbiter on Mars Transfer Trajectory.