India's space probe at final lunar orbit

BANGALORE, India, Nov. 13 (UPI) -- The Indian Space Research Organization said India's Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft has reached its final operational orbit around the moon.

European Space Agency scientists said the spacecraft -- India's first mission beyond Earth orbit -- is circling the moon at an altitude of about 100 kilometers (62 miles) after performing three orbit reduction maneuvers since it was captured into its initial lunar orbit Saturday. In the final orbit, the spacecraft crosses the lunar poles about every two hours.

"The spacecraft will perform chemical, mineralogical and photo-geological mapping of the surface, using its 11 scientific instruments," the ESA said. "Three of these, the C1XS and SIR-2 X-ray and infrared spectrometers … and the SARA atom analyzer were provided by Europe through ESA."

The next major event for the Chandrayaan mission is the release of a moon impact probe. The impact with the moon's surface is to provide scientists with information on lunar surface properties.

Chandrayaan-1 was launched Oct. 22. The mission is led by the ISRO, with coordination provided by the ESA. Other international partners in the mission include Bulgaria and the United States.