Thiruvananthapuram, April 4 (IANS). Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) Chairman V Narayanan on Saturday praised NASA’s latest ‘Artemis II’ mission and also expressed confidence that the mission will be ‘resoundingly successful’.
NASA’s ‘Artemis II’ Moon mission launched on April 2 from the US state of Florida. It is the first human flight around the Moon in more than 50 years, carrying four astronauts. This is the first manned mission under the Artemis program of the US space agency. The four-member crew includes NASA astronauts Reed Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, as well as Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen.
Narayanan told reporters, “In 1969, humans landed on the moon for the first time. Now, 57 years later, they want to land on the moon again through the Artemis program. This is a step in that direction. This is an orbital mission. I think they will go around the moon, and then come back.”
The ISRO chief said that he had also seen the launch on television, and during his visit to the Canadian space agency, he also got a chance to see the launch vehicle of this mission.
He said, “I too had the privilege of witnessing this launch, which took place at approximately 4:05 am (IST) on April 2. In fact, during our last visit to the Canadian Space Agency, this vehicle was still under construction. We got a chance to see its first stage.”
The ISRO chief also praised the technical specifications of the ‘Artemis II’ launch vehicle and said, “This is a huge step towards furthering human scientific endeavours. I am 100 per cent confident that this mission will be tremendously successful, and will pave the way for landing (humans on the Moon) in the future. This is a very important mission for humans.”
Narayanan also talked about the astronauts of India’s Gaganyaan mission, who are undergoing training under the ‘Mitra’ mission in Ladakh. He said, “We had inaugurated this program the day before yesterday. They are currently at a height of about 4 kilometers and are undergoing intensive training. This is a part of the Gaganyatri training programme.”
India’s selected astronauts, also known as ‘Gaganyatri’, who have been selected for ISRO’s first manned space mission, are currently undergoing high altitude training in the cold desert of Ladakh. Furthermore, regarding India’s Moon mission and the upcoming launch, ISRO Chairman said, “We are working towards launching as soon as possible. This financial year has just started. A lot of things are planned.”
He further said, “We are working on all the programs under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. We are making whatever best efforts are necessary to achieve what is necessary for the country in space activities.”
–IANS
SCH