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India's Mars Orbiter completes second Trajectory Correction Maneuver
The Indian Mars Orbiter refined its path to the Red Planet on Wednesday, conducting the mission’s second Trajectory Correction Maneuver to set up the proper approach of Mars for orbital insertion on September 24, 2014. According to the Indian Space Research Organization, MOM is in good health and Wednesday’s TCM was executed successfully.
Following its successful launch into Earth orbit atop a Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle on November 5, 2013 and 25 days of orbit raising, the Mars Orbiter left the planet behind by making its Trans-Martian Insertion Burn after six orbit-raising maneuvers. Leaving for Mars, the orbiter conducted its first Trajectory Correction in December to refine its path to Mars and correct any errors that occurred during TMI.
Carefully calculating MOM’s trajectory by using Delta DOR (Delta differential one-way ranging) measurements, teams decided to skip a planned course correction in April as the Mars Orbiter was on a very accurate path. In April and May, the spacecraft continued its cruise through the inner solar system, staying in contact with ground stations to allow teams to keep up to date on the vehicle’s status and health. Periodically, MOM activated its five instruments for regular check ups to ensure all instruments remain functional throughout the cruise to Mars.
To set up the proper trajectory for the approach to Mars, MOM was set for a short Trajectory Correction Maneuver on Wednesday. The commands for the burn were uplinked to the spacecraft hours in advance. For the burn, the Mars Orbiter was to use its attitude control system to re-orient to the proper attitude for the maneuver, pointing its 22-Newton thrusters in the correct direction. Engine start was expected at 11:00 UTC for a burn of only 16 seconds and a planned change in velocity of 1.577 meters per second.
According to the Indian Space Research Organization, telemetry sent back by the spacecraft showed that the burn was executed nominally. Final confirmation of a successful TCM will be provided after the orbiter could be tracked for some time to allow its precise trajectory to be assessed.
Wednesday’s TCM refined MOM’s trajectory as the vehicle begins approaching Mars. Another TCM is available as the spacecraft gets closer to Mars to target the precise point above the surface of the planet for the critical Mars Orbit Insertion Burn that will occur on September 24, 2014. Additional TCMs can be performed at any point in the cruise if the need arises.
As of 13:00 UTC on Wednesday, the Mars Orbiter had traveled 546 Million Kilometers on its journey from Earth to Mars.
MOM was 102.1 Million Kilometers from Earth traveling at a relative velocity of 61,200 Kilometers per hour. The one-way signal travel time between the spacecraft and Earth was 5 minutes and 41 seconds. The spacecraft was 27.95 Million Kilometers from Mars cruising at a relative velocity of 14,760 Kilometers per hour. MOM’s heliocentric velocity was 84,500 Kilometers per hour at a distance to the sun of 206 Million Kilometers. Also on its way to Mars, NASA’s MAVEN spacecraft was about 2.9 Million Kilometers from MOM.
Mars Orbiter Mission Updates - SPACEFLIGHT101
The Indian Mars Orbiter refined its path to the Red Planet on Wednesday, conducting the mission’s second Trajectory Correction Maneuver to set up the proper approach of Mars for orbital insertion on September 24, 2014. According to the Indian Space Research Organization, MOM is in good health and Wednesday’s TCM was executed successfully.
Following its successful launch into Earth orbit atop a Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle on November 5, 2013 and 25 days of orbit raising, the Mars Orbiter left the planet behind by making its Trans-Martian Insertion Burn after six orbit-raising maneuvers. Leaving for Mars, the orbiter conducted its first Trajectory Correction in December to refine its path to Mars and correct any errors that occurred during TMI.
Carefully calculating MOM’s trajectory by using Delta DOR (Delta differential one-way ranging) measurements, teams decided to skip a planned course correction in April as the Mars Orbiter was on a very accurate path. In April and May, the spacecraft continued its cruise through the inner solar system, staying in contact with ground stations to allow teams to keep up to date on the vehicle’s status and health. Periodically, MOM activated its five instruments for regular check ups to ensure all instruments remain functional throughout the cruise to Mars.
To set up the proper trajectory for the approach to Mars, MOM was set for a short Trajectory Correction Maneuver on Wednesday. The commands for the burn were uplinked to the spacecraft hours in advance. For the burn, the Mars Orbiter was to use its attitude control system to re-orient to the proper attitude for the maneuver, pointing its 22-Newton thrusters in the correct direction. Engine start was expected at 11:00 UTC for a burn of only 16 seconds and a planned change in velocity of 1.577 meters per second.
According to the Indian Space Research Organization, telemetry sent back by the spacecraft showed that the burn was executed nominally. Final confirmation of a successful TCM will be provided after the orbiter could be tracked for some time to allow its precise trajectory to be assessed.
Wednesday’s TCM refined MOM’s trajectory as the vehicle begins approaching Mars. Another TCM is available as the spacecraft gets closer to Mars to target the precise point above the surface of the planet for the critical Mars Orbit Insertion Burn that will occur on September 24, 2014. Additional TCMs can be performed at any point in the cruise if the need arises.
As of 13:00 UTC on Wednesday, the Mars Orbiter had traveled 546 Million Kilometers on its journey from Earth to Mars.
MOM was 102.1 Million Kilometers from Earth traveling at a relative velocity of 61,200 Kilometers per hour. The one-way signal travel time between the spacecraft and Earth was 5 minutes and 41 seconds. The spacecraft was 27.95 Million Kilometers from Mars cruising at a relative velocity of 14,760 Kilometers per hour. MOM’s heliocentric velocity was 84,500 Kilometers per hour at a distance to the sun of 206 Million Kilometers. Also on its way to Mars, NASA’s MAVEN spacecraft was about 2.9 Million Kilometers from MOM.
Mars Orbiter Mission Updates - SPACEFLIGHT101
