India to launch an orbiter to Mars in 2012 - Polidicks

[QUOTE]With New Delhi's iconic Red Fort as a backdrop, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh announced Wednesday his country has set its sights on the Red Planet.In a Wednesday speech marking India's independence day, Singh said his government has approved plans to put an unmanned probe in orbit around Mars. The mission "will be a huge step for us in the area of science and technology," he said. It's an ambitious goal, with a planned launch in November 2013 for a 10-month flight, said Kiran Karnik, a former official with the Indian Space Research Organization. "By the time the mission gets there, Mars will be comparatively the closest," Karnik told CNN's sister network CNN-IBN. "So there's a small window in which we need to make a launch and that's the reason the mission has to go up next year." Mars rover searching for signs of life The goal of the mission is to search for clues to the "geology, origin, evolution and sustainability of life" on Mars, according to an ISRO report published earlier this year. India's space program launched its first Earth satellite in 1975 and put an unmanned probe into orbit around the moon in 2008. It plans to launch its first manned spaceflight in 2016, though an Indian cosmonaut, Rakesh Sharma, flew aboard a Soviet space mission in 1984. [URL="http://edition.cnn.com/2012/08/13/us/mars-rover-curiosity-obama/index.html"] Mars 'Mohawk Guy' inspires Obama[/URL] The announcement comes as the U.S. space agency NASA is basking in the successful landing of its Curiosity rover August 6. If the 2013 mission is successful, India would become the first Asian country to reach Mars: A 1998 attempt by Japan failed to insert itself into martian orbit, while a Chinese probe was lost along with the Russian Phobos-Grunt mission in January. But Karnik said India shouldn't be concerned with stunts. "My only concern, if anything, is not the risk of failure," he said. "It's the risk that the program should not get diverted to these high-visibility, somewhat prestige-related events."[/QUOTE] Source: [URL]http://www.cnn.com/2012/08/15/world/asia/india-mars/index.html?hpt=wo_t3[/URL]

Well I hope they succeed

A third world country should have better priorities than this.

Every time I see something like this in the news, I always hope and pray that it sparks another space race so NASA gets more funding, which means we might see colonization on Mars within our lifetimes. Then I realize I shouldn't get my hopes up because that'll probably never happen. :(

orbiter flys to mars then crashes into curiosity.

[QUOTE=Daniel Smith;37264589]A third world country should have better priorities than this.[/QUOTE] india ain't third world

[QUOTE=KaIibos;37264688]india ain't third world[/QUOTE] It keeps its people in a third world status because the infrastructure to maintain a decent middle class would be mind boggling for them.

[QUOTE=KaIibos;37264688]india ain't third world[/QUOTE] It's populous sure as hell is, disease and hunger is rampant there.

[QUOTE=KaIibos;37264688]india ain't third world[/QUOTE] When half of your country simultaneously loses power, you are a third-world country.

INDIA ZINDABAD Money on first astronaut to Mars from India being Sikh

Get to the moon first, then talk about mars

Give your people power and then you can think about sending shit to outer space. [editline]16th August 2012[/editline] [QUOTE=lum1naire;37265167]INDIA ZINDABAD Money on first astronaut to Mars from India being Sikh[/QUOTE] or last name patel

[QUOTE=Daniel Smith;37264589]A third world country should have better priorities than this.[/QUOTE] they have ambitions. These ambitions make them one of the quickest developing countries. Poverty is not something you can just "take away" with money.

[QUOTE=AK'z;37266316]they have ambitions. These ambitions make them one of the quickest developing countries. Poverty is not something you can just "take away" with money.[/QUOTE] Sure it is, it's called population control Not to mention a major ambition of their's should be to help the poverty

[QUOTE=SubbyV-2;37266672]Sure it is, it's called population control Not to mention a major ambition of their's should be to help the poverty[/QUOTE] Population control is almost always a godawful idea.

[QUOTE=lum1naire;37265167]INDIA ZINDABAD Money on first astronaut to Mars from India being Sikh[/QUOTE]Surely they wont be able to fit that much hair into a helmet.