Talking to reporters on the sidelines of the 58th International Astronautical Congress here, he said the ISRO would consider sending a lander-rover, which can move on the surface of the moon. The conceptual design for the project was being evolved.
As for Chandrayaan-I, the ISRO was building the spacecraft. It would carry two instruments from the United States and also payloads from European countries including Bulgaria. However, the primary missions would be carried out with six Indian instruments.
Chandrayaan-I was mostly a remote-sensing spacecraft, meant for scanning the lunar surface for minerals and water.
The next project would look at the possibility of collecting samples and analysing them on the spot. Though Chandrayaan-II was basically an Indian mission, the ISRO would consider participation by other countries case by case if they showed interest in it.
Asked whether India had plans to participate in the International Space Station, Mr. Nair said, “We don’t have a meaningful proposal to conduct any experiment”.
On the proposed 60 ISRO missions, he said a series of communication and earth observation satellites including Oceansat and the radar imaging satellite had been lined up to meet national needs.
The capacity of the communication satellite was proposed to be increased from 200 to 500 transponders. This would require 10 missions to complete.
Also planned were 10-12 earth observation satellites and another 10 communication satellites. The GSLV Mark-III would be operational in two years.