Chandrayaan-1 Facing The Heat At The Surface Of Moon

Chandrayaan-1 Facing The Heat At The Surface Of Moon  In a shocking development, India’s first unmanned lunar craft, Chandrayaan-1 has reportedly encountered an unexplained rise in temperature.

There has been a small rise in the temperature on the atmosphere of Moon. However, scientists at ISRO did not expect it to influence the spacecraft in any way. According to the officials at ISRO, rise in the temperature is a normal phenomenon since it was still a summer time on Moon. They feel that the temperature would back to normal by December.

Speaking on this, Mr Satish, ISRO spokesperson said, “It is a usual phenomenon because it is summer on the moon. There is nothing to worry. It will be normal by December.”

At present, all the nine payloads of the spacecraft which have been switched on, are working fine. However, due to the rise in temperature, the officials have decided not to work on all the payloads at a given time to ensure that they are not affected by the heat.

“Two of the high voltage payloads SARA and Hex will be switched on shortly. These payloads are sensitive equipment and need more voltage. By the first week of December, the atmosphere will become benign on the moon,” said Satish.

It may be recalled here that in the past volcanoes have erupted on the surface of moon. The temperatures on moon have often reached to the figure of 100 degree Celsius!

Chandrayaan-1, India's first lunar mission, was launched on October 22 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, SHAR, Sriharikota by PSLV-C11. The mission aims to map the lunar surface, look for traces of water and the presence of helium.