Important Space Missions of ISRO, NASA and others

Mission Name

Details

Chandrayaan 1

• It was India's first lunar probe which was launched in October 2008. 
• Chandrayaan 1 comprises a lunar orbiter and an impactor. 
• This mission proved a major boost to India's space program, as India researched and developed its own technology to explore the surface of the Moon.

Chandrayaan 2

• It was launched in 2019 by a Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark III (GSLV Mk III). 
• This mission comprises a lunar orbiter, lander, and rover. 
• Objective- Identify the location and abundance of lunar water.

Mars Orbitor Mission

• Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) also known as Mangalyaan was launched in 2014. 
• MOM is India's first interplanetary mission. 
• With this mission, India has become the fourth country (1st in Asia) to reach Mars, after the USSR, US, European Space Agency. 
• ISRO is the first space agency in the world to achieve the milestone in its first attempt.

ASTROSAT

• It is the first dedicated Indian Astronomy satellite mission.
• Launched by ISRO in 2018.

Chandrayaan 3

• It was a sequel mission of Chandrayaan 2 that was projected to be launched in 2021.

Gaganyaan

• It is a joint mission of ISRO and HAL.
• Gaganyaan was intended to be the basis of the Indian Human Spaceflight Programme. 
• The spacecraft is being designed to carry three people, and a planned upgraded version will be equipped with rendezvous and docking capability.

Lunar Polar Exploration Mission

• A joint mission of JAXA (Japanese Space Agency) and ISRO. 
• Objective- To explore the south pole region of the Moon by 2024.

Aditya-1

• It is the 1st Indian Solar coronagraph spacecraft mission that aims to study solar corona in visible and near IR bands. 
• Launched by the year 2022.

Mangalyaan 2

• It is ISRO’s 2nd interplanetary mission planned for Mars. 
• Launched by the year 2022.
• Consists of an orbiter, lander, and rover.

Shukrayaan 1

• The aim of this mission is to study the atmosphere of Venus.

PSLV C-49/ EOS-01

• It was launched in November 2020.
• EOS-01 is an earth observation satellite, intended for applications in agriculture, forestry and disaster management support.

GSAT-30

• The satellite provides Indian mainland and island coverage in Ku-band and extended coverage in C-band covering Gulf countries, a large number of Asian countries, and Australia.
• It was launched from Kourou launch base, French Guiana.

PSLV-C48/RISAT-2BR1

• RISAT-2BR1 is a radar imaging earth observation satellite weighing about 628 kg. The satellite will provide services in the field of Agriculture, Forestry and Disaster Management.

Mission 

Details

Mars 2020 Rover

• This laser-equipped device will allow the rolling science station to vaporize rock samples and analyze the light emitted. 
• This will allow Mars 2020 Rover to determine the chemical makeup of the rocks.

New Horizon

• It will provide the first images of the distant ice ball. 
• It will explore the farthest reaches of our cosmic neighborhood.

NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts

• NASA will introduce some new concepts like hibernation pods, artificial gravity ships, fusion engines, self-repairing electronics, and spacecraft made out of asteroids.

InSight mission

• Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy, and Heat Transport (InSight), is the first mission to look deep beneath the Martian surface.
• It comprises a seismometer, sensors, magnetometer, and heat flow probe. 

PUNCH mission

• Polarimeter to Unify the Corona and Heliosphere (PUNCH) will take the images of regions beyond the Sun’s outer corona. 
• Will be launched by 2022.

Dragon Fly Mission

• NASA will send this mission to Titan, the largest moon of Saturn planet

Voyager 2

• It is NASA’s only spacecraft that studied all four giant planets of the solar system- Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.
• It was the 1st spacecraft to fly past Uranus in 1986 and Neptune in 1989, making it the only spacecraft to have had a close look of the icy planets of the solar system.

Mission 

Details

Chang’e 5

• It is an ongoing robotic mission of China's Lunar Exploration Program.
• If this mission is successful, then China will become the 3rd country to return samples from the Moon after the United States and the Soviet Union.

Vegetation and Environment monitoring on a New Micro-Satellite (VENµS)

• It is Israel’s first environmental satellite.
• It is dedicated to monitoring the effects of climate change on vegetation.
• It is a joint earth observation and exploratory mission of Israel and France.

Hayabusa-2

• It is Japan’s asteroid-sampling spacecraft which landed on Ryugu (asteroid).

Spektr-RG

• It is Russia’s all Sky-survey satellite.
• Joint Mission of Russia (ROSCOSMOS) and Germany (DLR).

Raavan-1 

• It is Sri Lanka’s low orbit cube research satellite (1st satellite ever).
• Launched in 2019.

Clearspace -1 Mission

• It will be launched by the European Space Agency by 2025.
• There will be a four-armed robot, Chaser which will clean up Earth’s orbit.

Tianwen or Thrust for Heavenly Truth 1

• It will be China’s first Mars probe.
• The aim of this mission is to observe Martian soil.

Emirates Mars Mission (EMM)

• It will be the 1st interplanetary venture of Saudi Arabia (first Arab nation).
• It will reach Mars by February 2021.
• Its orbiter which is known as Hope (or Amal in Arabic language), will produce the first global map of the Martian atmosphere.