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Space Topics: Chandrayaan-1

Science Instruments

Chandrayaan-1
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Chandrayaan-1
Credit: ISRO

Chandrayaan-1 will have instruments that allow the remote sensing of visible, near infrared, soft and hard X-ray, and low-energy gamma ray wavelengths on the surface of the Moon.  The total mass of the instruments is 55 kilograms.  Some of the instruments will be supplied or supported by NASA and ESA, including some spare instruments from SMART-1.

The Terrain Mapping Camera (TMC) is a panchromatic stereo camera with a 5-meter resolution and a 40-kilometer swath width.  It will be used to make a high-resolution atlas of the Moon's surface.

The HYper Spectral Image (HySI) is a camera that can make observations in the 400 to 900 nanometer band with a spectral resolution of 15 nanometers and a resolution of 80 meters on the ground. It will make mineralogical maps of Moon's surface.

The Lunar Laser Ranging Instrument (LLRI) will take elevation measurements of the Moon's surface with a resolution of 10 meters.  It will be used to make a topographic map of the Moon's surface.

The  High Energy X-ray/Gamma-ray Detector (HEX) will observe X-rays and Gamma rays from 10 to 200 kiloelectron volts.  It will be used to measure and detect very heavy radioactive isotopes on the Moon such as 210Pb, 222Rn degassing, uranium, thorium, etc.  It has a ground spatial resolution of 18 kilometers and is built with the help of ESA.

The Chandrayaan-1 Imaging X-Ray Spectrometer (CIXS-2) will observe X-rays and Gamma rays from 0.5 to 10 kiloelectron volts.  It will be used to detect and measure light radioactive isotopes such as silicon, aluminum, magnesium, calcium, iron, and titanium.  It is a copy of the same instrument on ESA's SMART-1, built by the UK with ESA.

The Solar X-Ray Monitor (SXM) will measure X-ray flux from the Sun in the range from 2 to 10 kiloelectron volts, using it  to calibrate the CIXS-2 by taking solar radiation into account.  It is also copy of the same instrument on SMART-1.

Miniature-Synthetic Aperture Radar (Mini-SAR) will look for material with "unusual scattering properties" on the surface of the Moon that would imply the existence of ice, a resource that could be used to support possible future manned lunar bases.  A similar device may be deployed on the NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, so the two devices could be used together for bistatic imaging.  The mini-SAR is manufactured by NASA.

The Sub keV Atom Reflecting Analyser (SARA) will observe particles from the Moon's surface that have been knocked off by solar wind and will also measure the Moon's magnetic field.  It is built by Sweden with ESA.

The Near-Infrared Spectrometer (SIR-2) will observe near-infrared light in wavelengths from 900 to 2.400 nanometers.  This will determine the mineralogical makeup of the surface of the Moon.  It is a copy of the same instrument on SMART-1, built by Germany with ESA.

The Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) can be used to make observations in the 700 to 3,000 nanometer range with a resolution if 10 nanometers.  In Targeted Mode, it has a ground resolution of 63 nanometers and 125-meter resolution in Global Mode.  It is manufactured by NASA.