The joint Russian-Indian lunar mission Chandrayaan-2 will be launched by a GSLV launch vehicle from a launchsite on Sriharikota Island in three years’ time, said K. Radhakrishnan, the head of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
“Russia and India are working on the Chandrayaan-2 joint lunar mission, which includes three components: a lunar orbiter made in India, a landing craft designed by Russia, and a rover for exploring the lunar surface, designed in India. The payload will be carried by an Indian-made GSLV in 2013,” he told reporters after meeting with Anatoly Perminov, head of the Russian State Space Agency (Roscosmos).
The record of Dr. Radhakrishnan’s speech is posted on the website of Roscosmos’ TV studio. India’s possible acquisition of several Russian-made12 KRB cryogenic boosters was also discussed during the meeting.
According to Interfax, Viktor Khartov, Chief Designer and General Director of Lavochkin Scientific Production Association, reported earlier that Russia’s Luna-Glob project would be united with the Russian-Indian Chandrayaan-2 (or Luna-Resurs, as it is known in Russia).
“As the implementation of Russia’s Luna-Glob project is scheduled for 2013, coinciding with the Russian-Indian Luna-Resurs, the experiments should be staged together,” Khartov said.
He noted that the implementation of the Luna-Resurs project was part of the Russian-Indian intergovernmental agreement. “The idea of the project is that India’s launch vehicle and flight module will take our landing craft into lunar orbit, after which we will land, and a small Indian-made rover will roll off our lcraft,” Khartov explained.
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