Amid the euphoria over the successful insertion of MOM spacecraft into the Martian orbit on Wednesday morning, the community of space scientists at the three units of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) here are justifiably proud of their contribution to the interplanetary voyage.
Some of the critical components in the MOM spacecraft and the PSLV-C25 launch vehicle that propelled it to the Red Planet were developed at the Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre (LPSC), Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) and ISRO Inertial Systems Unit (IISU).
While the Liquid Apogee Motor (LAM) engine and the Attitude and Orbit Control System (AOCS) thrusters of the Mangalyan spacecraft were developed at LPSC, the Mars exospheric neutral composition analyser (MENCA), a critical part of the spacecraft’s payload, was designed and developed at the Space Physics Laboratory, VSSC. The credit for the gyroscopes and accelerometers that guide the movement of the launch vehicle and craft goes to IISU.
The LAM engine proved its mettle on Wednesday morning when it successfully propelled the craft into the orbit of the Red Planet.
The eight AOCS liquid fuel thrusters, each with a thrust of 22 Newton, were also developed at LPSC. The thrusters are used for trajectory corrections to orient the spacecraft.
Fabricated at SPL, MENCA will be used to study the Martian upper atmosphere. It is part of the payload that also comprises the methane sensor, Lyman alpha photometer, Mars colour camera and thermal infrared imaging spectrometer on board the craft.
