Chandrayaan-2 takes off: People laud ISRO on Twitter over moon mission

A view of the Chandrayaan-2 onboard GSLV-Mk0III-M1 at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota in Nellore district of Andhra Pradesh, Monday/ PTI

India's second moon mission Chandrayaan-2 was successfully launched on Monday with an aim at landing a rover on unchartered Lunar South Pole. The three-stage rocket GSLV-MkIII-M1 took off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre into the skies at 2.43 p.m and about 16 minutes later released the 3,850 kg Chandrayaan-2 into the orbit. An earlier launch was called off on July 15 following a technical observed during the propellant filling stage.

It is touted as the most complex and prestigious mission undertaken by ISRO since its inception. Chandrayaan-2 will make India the fourth country to soft-land a rover on the lunar surface after Russia, the United States and China.

People took to Twitter to express their happiness during the proud moment. They even hailed the scientist for their sheer brilliance and extraordinary commitment to achieving this phenomenal success. Here are some of the tweets:

The 20-hour countdown for the launch started at 6.43 pm Sunday a week after the earlier launch was called off on July 15. Reportedly, a technical snag observed during the propellant filling stage. ISRO scientists rectified the glitch that prompted them to call off the earlier launch.

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