India ended the mission to explore the moon

The Indian Space Research Authority has just decided to end the moon expedition, after scientists lost all contact with the Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft.

" Every effort to resume contact has failed. The mission to explore the moon ends, " S. Satish, a spokesman for the Indian Space Research Agency (ISRO), told Reuters.

Contact with Chandrayaan-1 was cut off early in the morning on August 29. The cause of the incident is under investigation.

The unmanned airship worth $ 79 million was launched into the moon's orbit last October. The launch led India to become a cosmic power in Asia with China. A month later, Chandrayaan-1 sent a probe into the moon to send images of the planet's surface to Earth.

Artwork Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft on the moon orbit.(Photo: spacepin.org)

But an important sensor on board stopped working in July. The incident has led many scientists to worry that the first moon exploration - expected to last two years - will end ahead of time.

One of the main missions of the spacecraft is to search Helium 3 - a helium isotope. This element is quite rare in the world, but it is expected to be available on the moon. In the future Helium 3 can become an important material in fusion reactions (the process in which atomic nuclei join together to form a larger nucleus).

Satish said ISRO is ready to launch the unmanned ship Chandrayaan-2 to the moon in 2012. India will then bring manned ships into space and Mars.