ISRO Chief Aims to Explore Venus and Other Exo-Planets Following Successful Chandrayaan 3 Mission

New Delhi, Sep 26: After the success of the Moon mission, ISRO has been working to unravel the mysteries of dying stars and exoplanets, some of which are known to have atmospheres and are considered habitable, Indian Space Research Organization Chairman S Somanath said. on Tuesday.

While delivering a lecture organized by the Indian National Science Academy (INSA), Somanath said the space agency is also planning to explore the planet Venus, two satellites to study the space climate and its effects on Earth, and is planning a project for a spacecraft on Mars.

He said the XPoSat, or X-Ray Polarimeter Satellite, which is designed to study bright X-ray pulsars or dying stars, was ready for launch in December this year.

“We are also planning a satellite called ExoWorlds to look at exosolar planets, or planets outside our solar system that orbit other stars,” Somanath said.

He said there are more than 5,000 known exoplanets, of which at least 100 were thought to have atmospheres. The ExoWorlds mission studies the atmospheres of exoplanets and whether they are habitable or host life.

According to Somanath, the plans for the Mars Lander flight mission were also in the planning stage.

Regarding the need to study Venus, the ISRO chief said that the planet also has an atmosphere with an air pressure 100 times higher than that near the Earth’s surface.

He said scientists don’t know the reasons for the high air pressure near the surface of Venus.

He said that the thick clouds surrounding Venus are full of acids, and you can’t even penetrate the surface.

“It’s important to understand the evolution of the planets. Only if you look at Venus, Mars, you can really study the effects of what you do on Earth, what makes it habitable or uninhabitable. It all depends on your life. understanding it and being able to act on it,” Somanath said. PTI SKU SKU TIR TIR