SANSA Space Operations Tracking India’s Chandrayaan 2 Moon Mission

Press release provided by the South African Space Agency

SANSA Space Operations tracking India's Chandrayaan 2 Moon Mission
India's High Commissioner to South Africa, Jaideep Sarkar at the Hartebeesthoek facility Photo Credit: SANSA

Recently, India embarked on its second mission to the moon tagged “Chandrayaan 2”. This mission is equally important to South Africa, as the South African National Space Agency (SANSA) facility in Hartebeesthoek is part of various international ground stations that are tracking Chandrayaan 2 in a bid to ensure that it lands safely on the Moon.

Chandrayaan 2 carried 13 different payloads, which were distributed across three modules. The payload was sent to the Moon aboard ISRO’s Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle-Mk-III (GSLV Mk-III) rocket engine.

“The work being conducted at Hartebeesthoek is of great significance in the advancement of space science and engineering. When we are involved in missions such as the one being undertaken by India, it demonstrates our capabilities to operate competitively within the international space market,” said Tiaan Strydom, Business Development Manager of SANSA Space Operations.

According to Strydom, the relationship between SANSA and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has not only been about business, but has also evolved into a partnership where both parties share the latest technology and skills within the space industry.

SANSA had the privilege of hosting the Indian High Commissioner to South Africa, Mr Jaideep Sarkar, at the Hartebeesthoek facility. The purpose of the visit by the Commissioner was to congratulate SANSA for its continuous hard work in providing tracking services of satellites and rockets to nations such as India, and furthermore to appreciate the knowledge transfer between the two organisations involved in this project.

The Managing Director of SANSA’s Space Operations, Raoul Hodges, said: “I am very proud of the team at SANSA Space Operations; their work within the Space industry has been well recognised across the world, so much so that SANSA won a bid to host the 16th International Space Operations Conference (SpaceOps 2020) next year.

“This conference will see delegates from international space agencies, as well as technologists and academia, gather on African soil in Cape Town for the very first time in history, to engage in all aspects of space mission operations,” Hodges added.

This press release was originally published by SANSA

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