The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) informed that the fifth Earth-bound orbit-raising manoeuvre has been successfully performed by Chandrayaan 2 and with this, it moved a step closer to explore the uncharted territory of the Moon.

Chandrayaan 1 suggested the presence of water in the South Polar region of the Moon and Chandrayaan 2 will explore the South Polar region of the Moon to take further ISRO’s earlier findings. India will be the first country to land in a region which is far from the equator of the Moon.

ISRO confirmed that ‘The fifth earth-bound orbit-raising manoeuvre for Chandrayaan 2 spacecraft has been performed successfully on Tuesday, August 6, 2019, at 1504 hours IST as planned and scheduled. To perform this critical manoeuvre, the onboard propulsion system was used for a firing duration of of1041 seconds. Chandrayaan achieved 276 x 142975 km earth-orbit. All spacecraft parameters are normal.’

The agency tweeted that ‘Fifth earth-bound orbit-raising manoeuvre for Chandrayaan 2 spacecraft has been performed on Tuesday (August 6, 2019) at 1504 hrs (IST) as planned.’

ISRO is also to do the next manoeuvre. It will be the ‘Trans-Lunar Insertion’ (TLI). TLI is scheduled to be performed on August 14, 2019, between 0300 – 0400 hours IST. Chandrayaan 2 will detach its landing module Vikram after its placement in the lunar orbit. On September 7, it will make a soft landing on the Moon.

After its launch on 22 July, it was set at Perigee (less distance from Earth) 170 km and Apogee (more distance from Earth) at 45,475 km. On August 6, between 2.30 pm and 3.30 pm, Chandrayaan-2 successfully made a fifth change in the class. Now its perigee has been increased to 276 km and apogee 142,975 km. Now after this, a trans lunar insertion of Chandrayaan-2 will be done between 3 to 4 am on August 15. That is, Chandrayaan-2 will be put in a long orbit going towards the moon.

Since its launch on July 22, the 48-day journey of Chandrayaan-2 to reach the south pole of the moon has started.