When do we get a close-up of the Apollo 11 landing site, then?

i wondered when people would start bleating on about the apollo landings. boo hoo, the flags blowing, etc, etc.

nice too see that india is spending its money on something that all the poverty stricken people need.

alien icon because .....

If you head over there I think it's in a disused parking lot somewhere (hee hee! sorry I couldn't resist!!)

I wanna see the alien city the conspiracy theorists talk about! I'm not sure India will be bullied by the US into covering things up, if there is anything there that is

Are they going to set up a call centre at Tranquillity Base?

Aside from the hi tech woo hoo factor.

Given that the UK currently gives India £200m a year in aid rising to £300m next year. I don't understand why a country that cannot feed or shelter it's own people adequately can spurt wadges of cash on nuclear weapons and a space programme.

Isn't this the same country that screams for aid when a hurricane, monsoon, drought, flood, earthquake etc happens? Sorry but going forward (as far as my cash is concerned) hissoff.

If i can help it not a penny more shall you get from me.

Just what the heck do you think your going to find up there that the Russkies, Chinese, Japanese Yanks etc haven't already found? want to know what the moons like try the National Geographic channel.

So your big boys now - we'll just keep our dough closer to home. Go ask your own super rich country folk to dig deep instead.

As soon as it's released from the studios. Though whether it will end up with the full Bollywood treatment is doubtful as the over-loud music and dance sequences might be dropped for a western release.

The camera on Chandrayaan-1 has a minimum resolution of 5m - really amazing for a geological survey - but not quite enough to pick out details Apollo LM lower stages and the Moon Rovers left by the America. It *MAY* be enough to show SOMETHING is there, especially if they can photograph one of the landing sites in favourable lighting conditions when the American kit is all a twinkle, but don't get to hopeful of seeing Richard Nixon's lunar signature any time soon.

Your best hope is next year's Lunar Reconnaisance Orbiter (LRO) due to blast off from Kennedy late next April. It has a stunning 0.5m resolution, easily capable of resolving the landing sites and it is planned to make several passes over each of the Apollo sites.

Or if they do will they be paying rent?

See, all those who said buying that moon land was a waste of money, who's laughing now eh, eh!

Will they eventually colonise and establish a call centre on the moon? We can only hope.

Years of India consultancy code, makes me nervous of hidden magic number variables and lost exception.

private void doMission() throws Exception {

try {

flyRocketFromAndTo(52, 114);

// note Earth = 52

// Moon = 114;

// Mercury = 18;

// Sun = 5;

}

catch (RocketExplodedLeavingAtmosphereException e){

throw new Exception("Something went wrong.");

}

}

@Sam,

Guess where the MIP is going...

For those who've not yet experienced the joy that is the Daily Mash:

http://www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/international/india-to-build-hospital-on-the-moon--200810221345/

Hits the nail pretty much on the head really...

$83m How cheap is that?

A shuttle mission is estimated at around $500 million. I think the guys in the ISS need to

consider the delivery options when they're browsing Amazon.

If the promising probe is leaving from Kennedy then we can't trust any images it returns. I was sort of hoping the sandal brigade survey would show something. Oh well. Guess not.

i wondered when people would start bleating on about India spending money on space that could be better used helping the poor.

They would be doomed should something go wrong and they have to ring the script readers at home for help

Re: Poverty comments - Looking on the bright side - once India has cornered the private satellite launch market, they'll have gajillions of rupees to spend on the poor - They said this launch has cost something like £40M on the news, which is cock-all in space terms. Also, I didn't notice anyone complaining about the US banking bailout on similar grounds - yes there is poverty in America too - some of the $700B would have helped.

re: Moon landing proof - There are mirrors on the moon left by the Russians (I think that one is defunct, though) and the Americans, so we know mankind has sent something to the moon becuase you get laser beams back (very faintly) if they are pointed correctly. Anyone can do it, if they have a bob-or-two. The point being if people are prepared to believe that the American mirror which appeared just after Apollo isn't proof of a manned moon landing, they probably aren't going to believe that the remnants of a landing site weren't somehow setup too. There is a point with all conspiracy theories when you just have to give up and admit that everyone else in the world isn't wrong, maybe it's you.

Every counrty has poor, the US has homeless people and poverty-stricken areas too. India spending on technology is actually a good way to bring more of the country out of poverty.

And realistically, how much would 83m$ (figure shamelessly plagiarised from earlier post) really do for Indian poverty? It amounts to something like $0.10 per head - not really even a drop in the bucket. Of course, I understand that their entire space program costs more than this, but the amounts per head are still not going to make a difference.

while aligning the satell-camels.

yeah i know it's not much but seriously though do you honestly believe that any money made from this space program will be used to benefit the country in the long run? it would be better spent building a massive solar energy farm in the sahara or some other batshit insane (although feasible) project.

I think the point about the money was that the UK currently gives India money in aid (maybe we should claim that the payment is for outsourcing the UK space program)

A similar point was made recently that we give China money under foreign aid as well and the Conservatives were promising to review spending when they get in.

Given the number of countries in the world that are in worse shape than India (and China) it's most probably not unfair to ask if we are giving money to the right people if they can afford to do this. I imagine it's a little bit more complicated than just 'A doesn't need the money as much as B does' with ongoing long term initiatives etc.

So the government of a country pays its citizens $80m to build something technologically advanced... People are encouraged to work and learn in the process. And this is a bad thing because.....? I don't think the rocket itself is worth $80m; nearly all of that money must have gone into paying people to do stuff or supply things.

Over here in SA the government has more of a "no work, no problem". The peoples are paid to sit at home and do nothing. Where's the social upheaval element of that?

Why do people ask for photos of Apollo?

The only difference between any new photos and old ones is our special FX tech is about 50,000 times better than it was in the 60s.

I find it laughable that people who dispute Apollo for such stupid reasons as the sky being black in photos act like more pictures would make any difference.

So after that certain country near Sri Lanka had earthquake troubles the US sent food, the UK sent blankets, France sent accordions and SA sent replacements.

India cornering the satellite launching biz?

Read up on SpaceX, that recently had their first successful launch.

The kerosene-fueled Falcon 1 is notable for its price tag: $7.9 million, which is around an order of magnitude lower than the typical cost of an orbital launch. The rocket's first stage is designed to be recovered and reused after each launch, theoretically reducing the expense.

Customers have been lining up already to reserve launch dates for the Falcon 1 and the company's more powerful Falcon 9, which is still under development. During a news briefing, Musk told reporters that he received 500 congratulatory e-mails, including messages from existing and prospective customers.

It always fascinates me how people from the capitalist west start sounding like communists when it comes to comments about technological achievements of developing nations.

Also, India is a net foreign aid donor , not a recipient.

India will not develop without mastering advanced technology, and without inspiring it's people. For the small sum of $83 million, India will have encouraged *millions* of kids to go to school, stay in school, and study science and engineering. A decade from now, these kids will be graduating school and college, inspired and motivated to perform even greater deeds.

*No* country ever attempted to curtail its technological progress until the absolute lowest common denominator had been dealt with. The US was sending men to space while treating men down home as subhumans. Britain was ruling the seas while brutalizing a quarter of the planet. I'm sure there are plenty of things in your own countries that are really examples of poor resource allocation. Focus on them instead. Thanks.

If you just consider this a PR/advertising exercise for the satellite launch industry, then it's a good spend.

When you consider that Microsoft spent $300M for Bill to waggle his arse on TV, then spending $80m or so is small.

If they can get to the moon for $80m, then they can get to LEO a lot cheaper.

I don't think anyone gives a damn about what the Indian state spends its ill gotten gains on "Anonymous John" but as "Rusty...." says we do worry what they spend OUR money on. Until India stops allowing murders of poor people who really don't want to be stuck in the lowest caste all their days and all the other nonsense perpetrated in the name of that evil hindu religion the West should give not one penny to them. They have signed the rights of man, and wmoan, enshrined in the UN charter, I have seen the actual signatures, but they haven't enacted them. "Anonymous John" should hang his head in shame or does he have a daughter we can send them to rape and murder on the beach and not be charged for because the people doing the crime are high caste members? India is a sick society with sick priorities and the horror of it is very very few of the brahmins see anything wrong in what they do. Ask Paris Hilton she knows all about it.

Way to go.... from being the world's biggest empire with a navy that ruled to ocean to a bunch of whiny little muppets. What has your nation done recently to inspire its young to study science and technology ? You folks have no clue that UK-India trade and investment exceed your precious bundle of aid by 100X .

There's a British-built payload aboard that 'scandalous waste of money'. Funny no one complains about that. Maybe you ought to drive to Oxfordshire and protest in front of the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory: http://www.sstd.rl.ac.uk/c1xs

I expected the debates on whether a poor country like India should spend so much on the Moon launch. All the people made interesting points, but your post was particularly tangential.

I do not know the reason why you have brought up the caste issue here. For your information, now the govt. has sanctioned nearly 50% of college seats for the "lower caste", they have substantially lower fees, age limits are higher and minimum requirements for the jobs are lower. Yes, it is a problem and people are trying to fight it. Of course, it takes time. I write "lower caste" in quotes because the people who avail this are economically well off and the really deserving ones do not get the benefits.

Regarding the rest of your illogical post, "evil Hindu religion"?!! come on, its too puerile. We all know here the evils perpetrated in the name of religion.

Regarding the rape and murder in Goa, the tourists themselves head toward the spot for the drug haven that it is. surely you do not expect preaching there, do you? you have to be careful while dealing with drug dealers, or is it safer there in the UK? also, a mother sending her 16 year old daughter to these places is equally culpable as the murderer.

"Sick society with sick priorities", oh come on. even the usual whiners about outsourcing would give us more credit than that....

Usual disclaimer: Indian, in India and yes by birth a "Brahmin". Needless to say, I do not like this casteism any more than you do.

However, how does all of this link with the space launch?