Chandrayaan-2: Islands of calm in an emotional mission control

It was around 2 am and there was pindrop silence inside the Chandrayaan-2 mission control room. The scientists were glued to their screens, tracking the descent of the lunar lander and rover. Soon it was apparent that things were not going as planned. ISRO chief K Sivan went up to the viewing gallery to brief PM Narendra Modi, who patted him on his back before leaving the gallery.

After ISRO lost contact with the lander, Vikram, video feed from the command centre showed fellow scientists consoling a distraught Sivan by patting him on his back. A few tense moments later, India’s top space scientist announced they have lost contact with the lander and the rover. Soon after Modi concluded his speech asking scientists not to be disheartened by the setback, the ISRO chairman broke down. In a video that soon went viral, the PM can be seen consoling Sivan, known to be a tough taskmaster, with a hug.

But there were islands of strength in the visible emotional mission control. The two women who played crucial roles in the mission — Mission Director Ritu Karidhal and Project Director Muthayya Vanitha — looked extremely composed.


Minutes before Sivan’s announcement that the communication has been lost, a speaker in the control room crackled with the news that data has been received. Karidhal calmly spoke into a microphone asking the speaker if the data was from the lander. There was no immediate response. Though the tension in the air was palpable, she kept her emotions in check.

Later, when scientists huddled with the PM who told them to “be courageous”, Vanitha just smiled in response to Modi’s words, an oddity in a circle full of long and worried faces.