City celebrates Chandrayaan-2 launch

Bhubaneswar: The city joined the rest of the country in rooting for the Indian Space Research Organization (Isro) as the clock ticked down to the lift-off of India’s second unmanned moon mission, Chandrayaan-2, on Monday.
From the young to the old, astronomy geeks to science noobs, everyone kept their fingers crossed for a successful launch. There was a collective sigh of relief around crowded television sets as the lift-off proceeded without incident at Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota at 2.43 pm.
The Odisha capital has a special connect with Chandrayaan-2 as the ‘limbs’ of Pragyan, the mission’s moon rover, have been made here at the Union government-run Central Tool Room and Training Centre. The institute also manufactured 22 types of valves for fuel injection and other parts for the cryogenic engine of the GSLV Mk-III rocket and seven specific assemblies for navigation and inertial momentum of the orbiter.
Citizens, including chief minister Naveen Patnaik, took their excitement to Twitter and congratulated all those who were involved in the mission. “Congratulations to the scientists of @isro for the successful launch of India’s first exploratory mission, #Chandrayaan2, to our celestial neighbour. The historic journey will carry billions of dreams to #Moon, making a giant leap in space exploration,” Naveen tweeted.
Senior BJP leaders and Union ministers from the state, Dharmendra Pradhan and Pratap Sarangi, also took to Twitter to congratulate Isro. “The #Chandrayaan2, India’s biggest and most anticipated space mission, is a matter of great pride for every Indian. It will be a quantum leap towards improving our understanding of the moon and unearthing discoveries that will benefit humanity as a whole,” he tweeted.
Sarangi wrote, “Many congratulations to @isro and its women-led team that made the ambitious moon mission #Chandrayaan2 launch a reality, bringing India closer to become the fourth country in the world to soft-land a spacecraft on the lunar surface.”
A senior scientist at the Institute of Physics, Bishnu Charan Parija, said, “Though delayed, Chandrayaan-2 has been launched successfully. We are thankful to the scientists that the problem that delayed the launch was detected on time. The project will create an interest in science, especially space technology and astronomy, among the youth.”
The Pathani Samanta Planetarium here has been screening a film on Chandrayaan-2 since July 10 to keep the buzz around the mission alive. “It is indeed a moment of pride for all Indians,” said deputy director of the planetarium, Subhendu Patnaik.
Schools in the city made elaborate arrangements to make the day memorable, including by arranging big screens to telecast the launch live. Some schools made students form human chains to spell out Chandrayaan-2. “Along with thanking the scientists who could make the moon mission possible with indigenous technology, I also thank the Centre for supporting the project,” said Saswat Mohanty, a student of Class XI in DAV Public School, Chandrasekharpur.
President of the astronomy club of SAI International School, Vadali Kriti Krisha, said, “I am delighted at the successful launch of Chandrayaan-2. It is a great achievement for our country. We will be the first to be landing on the south pole of the moon and our rover will stay there to record and understand the moon’s mineral composition and seismic activities.”
Girl students expressed happiness as the mission was headed by women scientists. Neelam Mohanty, a Class X student of DAV Public School, Pokhariput, said, “Chandrayaan-2 is also important because it has been led by women scientists. This just shows women power.”