MOM vs MAVEN

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has prestigiously undertaken the Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) with the sole scientific objective of exploration of Mars surface features, morphology, mineralogy and Martian atmosphere by aboriginal scientific instruments, besides many technological aspects. Similar to ISRO’s MOM, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has also undertaken Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution Mission (MAVEN), with the aim of exploring the Red Planet’s upper atmosphere, ionosphere and interactions with the sun and solar wind, besides many other similar objectives.

After completing a 10-month interplanetary journey of 442 million miles (711.33 million km), MAVEN is nearing its scheduled insertion into the Martian orbit on September 21. As calculated, the mission timeline will place the spacecraft in orbit at approximately 7:20 pm (IST) on September 21.

From the other end, after completing an interplanetary journey of more than 10 months covering a distance of 484.67 million miles (780 million km), the Mars Orbiter Mission – more aptly known as Mangalyaan – is expected to enter orbit around Mars on September 24, 2014, at 8.15 am (IST).

On November 5, 2013, the MOM probe lifted off from SHAR centre at Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh. The technology demonstrator mission has been aimed at developing technologies required for design, planning, management and operations of an interplanetary mission. As far as the Indian space technology is concerned, it is India’s first interplanetary mission and, if successful, ISRO would become the fourth space agency to reach Mars, after the Soviet space programme, NASA, and the European Space Agency. MAVEN was successfully launched aboard an Atlas V launch vehicle on November 18, 2013. It is designed to study the Martian atmosphere while orbiting Mars. Mission goals include determining how Martian atmosphere and water, presumed to have once been substantial, were lost over time. The plan is for MAVEN to be inserted into an areocentric elliptic orbit upon reaching Mars, 6,200 km by 150 km above the planet's surface, on September 21, 2014, at approximately 7:20 pm (IST). Though there are many similarities between these two missions, a reasonably good number of facts support that India’s MOM mission is superior to the MAVEN mission of the US. NASA took one year for planning the MAVEN project, whereas the mission planning of MOM took just six months time. MOM was launched on November 5, 2013, and MAVEN on November 18, 2013. After covering a distance of 780 million km in 323 days, the MOM is likely to complete its journey on September 24, 2014. Conversely, MAVEN mission will enter the Martian atmosphere on September 21, 2014, after covering a distance of 712 million km in 307 days. Though the time taken for the interplanetary travel may appear more for ISRO’s MOM, in actuality, it is less if the additional 68 million km covered by it is taken into consideration. Also, there is reasonably a great difference between the amounts spent on these two projects. A total of just $ 75 million was incurred towards the MOM project. In constrast, $671 million was incurred on the MAVEN project. A pictorial comparison of the two has been given here. In view of the aforementioned facts, indubitably, ISRO’s MOM Mission turns out to be superior to NASA’s MAVEN.