Chandrayaan-2 launch to happen on July 15 at 02:51 AM

While there are many interesting aspects of the moon mission, one thing to note is that it will attempt a soft landing on the south polar region of the lunar surface. This is the first time any Indian space mission is trying to pull off a soft landing, and on the south polar region of the moon. ISRO chairman termed the soft landing as  “15 terrifying minutes,” which suggests that it is no easy feat to achieve. Sivan also said that the Vikram lander aboard the spaceship is most likely to touch down on the moon's surface on September 6, 2019.

The GSLV MkIII-M1 spacecraft weighs 3.8 tonnes and will carry the lander and orbiter modules, which will be stacked together as a composite structure. The lander will house the rover (called Pragyaan). "The propulsion systems of the orbiter will be used for manoeuvres. Then we will have the translunar burns to take the composite structure closer to the Moon. After this the spacecraft will cover 3.5 lakh-km and travel there for five days," Sivan said. The rover aboard the lander will help scientists conduct experiments on the lunar surface. The GSLV MkIII-M1 will also carry 13 Indian payloads, along with one passive experiment.