WHAT MAKES CHANDRAYAAN DIFFERENT?
So, just what will Chandrayaan do that has not been done earlier by any of the other lunar missions? Chandrayaan is carrying 11 payloads, which, individually and together, will carry out a range of studies. Some of them have never been attempted before.
*With a Terrain Mapping Camera (TMC), Chandrayaan will attempt to capture the high-resolution three-dimensional topography of the entire moon's surface. Aided by a laser altimeter to determine the altitude of the spacecraft from the moon’s surface, the TMC should be able to prepare an elevation map with an accuracy of about 10m. Such data would enable scientists to understand the moon’s evolution and also single out areas on its surface, which can be of scientific interest in the future.
*An instrument called Hyperspectral Imager will try to determine the mineral composition of the moon’s surface by obtaining spectroscopic data. This will help in augmenting the already available information on the mineralogy of the moon. Chemical and mineralogical data are other indicators in strengthening man’s knowledge about the origins and early evolution of the moon.

A high-energy X-ray spectrometer will carry out the first-ever experiment of its kind to test the hypothesis of the presence of water-ice deposits in the moon’s polar region. It will also attempt to identify the areas with high concentrations of uranium and thorium.
Though Chandrayaan is just an orbiter and not a lander, it will also test its technologies for a future soft landing on the moon’s surface through the Moon Impact Probe (MIP), which will be ejected from the main spacecraft and will hit the lunar surface at a selected location. Besides qualifying technologies for a future landing mission, the MIP will enable an examination of the moon from very close quarters.

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