ISRO planning experiments on future moon missions : Minister

New Delhi, Dec 3 : Buoyed by the success of discovery of water on moon surface by Chandrayaan I, the Government is considering further mapping of lunar surface and in-situ experiments over select lunar areas in the next decade even as Chandrayaan II is scheduled to be launched in 2012-13, the Rajya Sabha was informed today.

Minister of State for Science and Technology and Earth Sciences Prithviraj Chavan in written answers said the Indian Space Research Organisation was working out the configuration of instruments to be carried on the Chandrayaan II. The mission was considering carrying a probe to collect and analyse samples from lunar surace. These researches will benefit the practical world by way of providing scientific understnding on evolution of earth and solar system and also indicating the possible avenues for planerary exploitation.

He said an analysis of Moon Mineralogy Mapper, an equipment carried on Chandrayaan I, had shown presence of water (H2O) and Hydroxyl (OH) molecules on polar surface of the moon.

The discovery was made under Chandrayaan I, costing Rs 386 crore including the cost associated ground infrastructure.

--UNI