As reported in a previous SM post, it seems like India is serious this time about their moon mission. It is healthy to be skeptical because they have balked at various space exploration ventures before, but this time it appears to be legit. Science magazine reports that western scientists are now clamoring to get their experiments on board:
Western researchers often beat a path to developing countries to study endangered species, ancient civilizations, or traditional medicine, among other subjects. Now it’s time to add planetary science to that list. Five scientists from around the world are jostling to get their experiments aboard an Indian spacecraft, Chandrayaan-1, that is slated to fly to the moon in September 2007.
“Chandrayaan offers a very cost-effective means to gather critical and unique data on the moon while forging new cooperative relationships in lunar exploration,” says one of the finalists, Paul Spudis of the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland. Another finalist, Manuel Grande of the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Chilton, U.K., says he welcomes “the increasing opportunities for flying experiments on emerging space-nation launch vehicles and satellites.”
There were 30 scientists from 11 countries vying for a spot on Chandrayaan, but the list has been narrowed to five. Several other countries including the U.S. are planning robotic moon missions toward the end of this decade. However, with NASA’s budget always in flux and space science cuts looming, even American scientists were looking for a spot on the Indian spacecraft.
Given these uncertainties [in the funding of other nation’s space programs], space researchers say they welcome the chance to vie for a spot on the Indian probe. And the benefits cut both ways. The competition is designed to ensure “maximum scientific knowledge about the moon,” says ISRO chair Gopalan Madhavan Nair. Former ISRO chief Krishnaswamy Kasturirangan says it should also “enhance India’s status as a potential partner in future space exploration.”
