Still nearly over the moon!

India kept her hopes up given the heights to which ISRO has taken her. A very dejected Chairman, K Sivan was a glimpse into how devotedly the scientists pursue their task. India has had several successful space missions to its credit and all have been made possible because of ISRO's competence and its professionals. Among all the achievements that India celebrates, there is also a need to value failures and glitches to success because those too are milestones in the direction of greater developments. Efforts are still being made to establish communication with the lost lander and establish a link with the satellite over the next fortnight. The relentless pursuit of ISRO scientists to accomplish their chosen mission only elevates the respectable position of the organisation that people not just recognise but also hold in high esteem. It is a greater matter of pride that as a nation, we have scaled the heights to the Moon; India has been gracious to remain encouraging of the efforts of the esteemed organisation despite the anomaly. The soft landing mission to the Moon is indeed a difficult feat to accomplish and India is not the first country to falter in this achievement. Israel's Beresheet moon landing mission had also crashed on the lunar surface when it attempted a moon landing with its Beresheet spacecraft in April this year. However, the engines meant to slow the craft's descent and allow a soft landing had failed and contact with it had been lost. The spacecraft didn't land successfully, but descended, and crashed into a massive lava plain on the Moon's near side, known as the Sea of Serenity. In this regard, India's faltering is certainly understandable. ISRO has been able to identify Vikram, but the condition of the lander is yet to be ascertained. Refusing to give up on its mission, ISRO will investigate several factors to determine what triggered the communication loss with Vikram. This entire exercise of space exploration has definitely boosted the morale of the Indian people who, for a change, adhere to the 'Indian' national identity without any reference to exclusive factors such as region, caste, or colour. ISRO has made India proud on many occasions and this is no different. In an India reeling under economic crisis, ISRO sets examples of how great achievements could be accomplished with reasonable resources.