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Updated: May 31, 2020 08:38 IST

The Indian Space Research Organisation will launch its second mission to the moon — Chandrayaan-2 — on July 15. After the launch, it will take 16 days to raise the orbit and then five days to reach the moon’s orbit.

Isro chairman K Sivan said the mission, expected to reach the moon by September 6-7, will be the first such operation near the south pole of the moon, and will make India just the fourth country to complete a soft landing on the lunar surface.

“Chandrayaan-2 will be launched on July 15 at 2.51 am,” Sivan said at a news briefing. “It will utilise the GSLV Mk-III [Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark-III] launch vehicle, which is the most powerful launcher we have used till date,” he added.

Here’s all you need to know about the mission:

*The entire project is set to cost Rs 978 crore — Rs 603 crore for the spacecraft and Rs 375 crore for the GSLV Mk-III. Chandrayaan-2 consists of an orbiter, a lander (Vikram), and a rover (Pragyan).

*The mission will send the rover to the moon’s south pole and Indian scientists hope to directly observe the water ice on the lunar surface, evidence for which was gathered by spectrometers aboard India’s first moon mission in 2008.

Watch| 3 days to Chandrayaan 2 launch: ISRO explains most ambitious mission

Also Read | Chandrayaan-2, India’s second moon mission, to be launched on July 15

*After the launch, it will take 16 days to raise the orbit and then five days to reach the moon’s orbit. Once there, it will make an orbit around the moon for 27 days, before the lander makes an attempt to de-orbit. After four more days, the lander will land in a difficult manouevre that lasts 15 minutes.

*It will take four hours from the time of landing to the time rover comes out. We might have landing pictures within 15 minutes.

*The rover and the lander of the mission will have a life of one lunar day, which is equal to 14 earth days, though the orbiter has a life of one year. The landing window is likely to be between September 6 and 7 because that is the beginning of a lunar day and scientific experiments will be conducted during this period.

Also Read | ‘Hoping to find water’: 10 things to know about Chandrayaan-2