It was a truly 21-st century camaraderie befitting India’s astonishing scientific quantum-leap.
When the Indian Space Research Organisation made waves on Wednesday after its Mars Orbiter became the first satellite worldwide to enter the orbit of the red planet on a first attempt, the Mars mission of the U.S. National Aeronautical and Space Administration sent congratulations to its peer through micro-blogging site Twitter.
“Namaste, @MarsOrbiter! Congratulations to @ISRO and India's first interplanetary mission upon achieving Mars orbit,” NASA’s Curiosity Rover said.
And the bonhomie flowed.
Through its Twitter handle the Orbiter replied, “Howdy @MarsCuriosity ? Keep in touch. I'll be around,” thus sealing the bond on an interplanetary friendship that is sure to warm even the cold, silent reaches of space.
Back on earth NASA added its voice to the congratulatory messages and extended a welcome to India’s mission, tweeting, “We congratulate @ISRO for its Mars arrival! @MarsOrbiter joins the missions studying the Red Planet. #JourneyToMars.”
Earlier NASA’s orbital mission, known as Maven, said that it was tracking the orbital entry of India’s Orbiter, saying, “During #Mars orbit insertion, the @isro #MarsOrbiter spacecraft is tracked by 4 DSN antennas,” and it showed graphics illustrating the process.
Nisha Biswal, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia, extended her felicitations to the Indian team too, congratulating ISRO for Orbiter’s “successful entry into the Mars orbit within days of NASA’s Maven.”
