NASA joins hands with ISRO in reaching out to Vikram lander

Mumbai: The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is continuing its attempt to reach out to India's moon lander sending communication skills with its Deep Space Network (DSN), officials said.

News agency, IANS reported that American space agency, National Aeronautics and Administration's (NASA) Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) is sending radio signals to Vikram.

An unnamed source told news agency IANS that attempts are being made to re-estabilish communication links with the moon lander Vikram.

"The attempts will be made till September 20-21 when the sunlight will be there in the area where the Vikram has landed," he said.

ISRO is trying to re-establish link with its Indian Deep Space Network (IDSN) at Byalalu near Bengaluru.

Spaceflight Now quoted Lori Glaze, head of NASA’s planetary science division, in a presentation Tuesday to the National Academies’ Committee on Astrobiology and Planetary Sciences saying, “We did have a NASA Laser Retroreflector Array flying on that mission, so we’ll look out for that (Vikram lander) as we go forward, just as we continue to look for the Laser Retroreflector Array that was on Beresheet. We’ll hopefully be getting some images of where that lander laid to rest.”

Scott Tilley, an amateur astronomer helped find a weather satellite IMAGE in 2018 that was considered to be lost. IMAGE was launched by NASA in 2000 and lost contact after five years.

Tilley, who is also helping out track Vikram lander wrote, "DSN24 just switched to #VikramLander! Await tune up and tracking to start now."