India aims to send astronaut to the moon by 2040
The Hindu
India aims to send astronaut to moon by 2040; PM Modi directs space dept. to develop roadmap for moon exploration; plans for Indian Space Station by 2035; missions to Venus and Mars also planned.
India aims to send an astronaut to the moon by 2040, the government said on October 17, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi issued instructions to the space department that include plans for a space station by 2035.
India's space ambitions got a boost when it became the first country to land a spacecraft near the unexplored south pole of the moon in August, just days after a similar Russian mission failed, and the fourth overall to achieve a soft landing.
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After that success, India launched a rocket to study the sun and is scheduled to conduct a test later this week as part of its crewed space mission.
"Prime minister directed that India should now aim for new and ambitious goals, including setting up 'Bharatiya Antariksha Station' (Indian Space Station) by 2035 and sending first Indian to the moon by 2040," the government said in a statement.
"To realise this vision, the Department of Space will develop a roadmap for moon exploration," it added.
Mr. Modi has also called on scientists to work on missions to Venus and Mars.
While residents are worried over deaths due to diarrhoea in Vijayawada, officials still grapple to find the root cause. Contaminated drinking water supplied by VMC officials is the reason, insist people in the affected areas, but officials insist that efforts are on to identify the disease and that those with symptoms other than diarrhoea too are visiting the health camps.