Mangalyaan has an Australian connect

NEW DELHI: India and the world got to know about the 'Mangalyaan' entering the orbit of Mars from the Canberra Deep Space Communication Complex (CDSCC) which was capturing signals from the unmanned spacecraft, Australia said today.

Australian High Commissioner Patrick Suckling, while congratulating the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on "historic" accomplishment, said engineers working at the CDSCC played a key role in confirming that the spacecraft entered the orbit of the Red Planet.

He said said CDSCC's Deep Space Station 43, which has supported many important space missions, captured the minute signals from the mission.

"I commend ISRO on this historic event," Suckling said adding, "It is an important milestone for ISRO and for Indian space research and exploration."

India became the first nation in the world to successfully reach Mars on its first attempt when indigenously built 'Mangalyaan' unmanned spacecraft entered the orbit of Mars.

Talking about CDSCC's role, he said it was an example of the expanding scientific cooperation between Australia and India.

"The Canberra Deep Space Communication Complex is the prime station for the mission as it relays data to mission control at ISRO's Telemetry Tracking and Command Network in Bangalore. This is a critical element of this mission," he said.

Australia and India have a strong record of cooperation in space research and exploration. The two countries had signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Civil Space Cooperation in 2012.