Latest Update : As per data available to us at (5.00 p.m. ) 5th January 2012, Phobos Grunt completes one
rotation around the earth every 87.30 minutes.
Presently it is moving around earth in 125.25 km
by 142Km
It Positioned at 6.2N,120.5W (Check the Map) Re-entry is expected in 5 hours.Here is the Link to the Document with details of Timings click here
for all important links in this page click here
What is Phobos Grunt Mission ?
Phobos-Grunt
was an attempted Russian sample return
mission to Phobos (one of the moons of Mars). Phobos-Grunt also carried the
Chinese Mars orbiter Yinghuo-1 and the tiny Living Interplanetary Flight
Experiment funded by the Planetary Society..
COSPAR ID: 2011-065A is the identification number of this mission.
Here is the powerpoint presentation created by Student Vennela Krishna Click here
COSPAR ID: 2011-065A is the identification number of this mission.
Here is the powerpoint presentation created by Student Vennela Krishna Click here
What will happen on 15 or 16th
January 2012 ?
This
probe will first re-enter earth atmosphere and over 200 kgs of its parts are
expected to survive and fall on earth.
But no
one know wether it will fall in ocean or on land and where.
When was this mission launched ? And what happened ?
It was launched on 8 November 2011, 20:16 UTC
from the Baikonur Cosmodrome, but subsequent rocket burns intended to set the
craft on a course for Mars failed. Which left it stranded in low Earth orbit.
What is the weight of this probe ? Which vehicle was used to Launch ? What was the actual duration of the mission.
13,200 kg with fuel is the weight of the probe. Zenit-2SB Vehicle was used for launch
What kind of Mission was this ?
Mission type Orbiter, lander, sample return
Were there any efforts to recover
this craft ?
Attempts
continued for several weeks to try to communicate with the spacecraft in the
hope that it could be repurposed, or at least diagnostic telemetry could be
obtained, with the European Space Agency aiding the Russian Federal Space
Agency in tracking the craft.
However,
efforts to recover the craft were unsuccessful, and it is now on course to fall
back to Earth in an uncontrolled manner, probably on January 15, 2012.
The
Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported on 24 November 2011 that the mission
had been pronounced a failure because the spacecraft could no longer be sent to
Mars, the final opportunity to do so having passed on 21 November.
Who is creater of Phobos Grunt ?
Funded
by the Russian space agency Roscosmos and developed by NPO Lavochkin and the
Russian Space Research Institute, Phobos-Grunt was the first Russian-led
interplanetary mission since the failed Mars 96. (The last successful Russian interplanetary
missions were Vega 2 in 1985–1986, and the partially successful Phobos 2 in
1988–1989.)
What was expected result of
Phobos Grunt mission ?
The return
vehicle, carrying up to 200 g of soil from Phobos, was to have returned to
Earth in August 2014.
Phobos-Grunt
was designed to become the first spacecraft to return a macroscopic sample from
an extraterrestrial body since Luna 24 in 1976.
Here is the Map of Phobos Grunt with estimated place of Fall (as on 4pm 15 Jan)
Who is Monitoring the Re-Entry of this Mission ?
The Inter-Agency Space Debris Coordination Committee is an inter-governmental agency whose aim is to co-ordinate efforts to deal with debris in orbit around the Earth founded in 1993. Members
Agenzia Spaziale Italiana (ASI)
British National Space Centre (BNSC)
Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES)
China National Space Administration (CNSA)
German Aerospace Center (DLR)
European Space Agency (ESA)
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
National Space Agency of Ukraine (NSAU)
Russian Federal Space Agency (ROSCOSMOS)
Canadian Space Agency (CSA)
Here is the animation of youtube click here
Here is view from Ground of the Mission as pictured by amateur astronomers :
If you are interested to know where exactly this Probe is see these links
1. http://www.n2yo.com/?s=37872
2. http://www.satflare.com/track.html?q=phobos#MAP
3. http://www.satview.org/
4. http://www.lizard-tail.com/isana/tracking/index.html?&target=phobos_grunt
Plantary Society does not know who among these three sites is accurate.
Other questions:
Q.
What was the purpose of Phobos Grunt?
Phobos
Grunt was sent to study the atmosphere and dust storms, plasma and radiation of
Mars from orbit. Its mission also included landing on Phobos and returning a soil
sample from Phobos to Earth using a sample return vehicle.
Q.
What were the science goals set for Phobos Grunt?
There
were seven primary goals:
•Delivery
of samples of Phobos soil to Earth for scientific research
•In situ
and remote studies of Phobos
•Monitoring
the atmospheric behavior of Mars
•Studies
of the vicinity of Mars
•Study
of the origin of the Martian satellites
•Study
of the role played by asteroid impacts in the formation of terrestrial planets
•Search
for possible past or present life
Q. What
was the total budget of Phobos Grunt?
The cost
of the spacecraft was 1.5 billion rubles or $64.4 million. Project funding for
the timeframe 2009–2012, including post-launch operations is about 2.4 billion
rubles.Total cost of the mission is 5 billion rubles or $163 million.
Q.
Who were the partners?
The
Chinese Mars probe Yinghuo-1 was sent together with Fobos-Grunt.
Q.
Where will it fall?
The
reentry zone has not been predicted yet.
Q.
What risk does it pose?
There
are 7.5 tonnes of highly toxic hydrazine and nitrogen tetroxide on board. This
is fuel intended for the space craft's upper stage. Scientists say that the
fuel might burn out on reentry in the atmosphere and not reach the ground at
all. www.skylab2012.tk
