From The Telegraph: "India has triumphed in its first interplanetary mission, placing a satellite into orbit around Mars and catapulting the country into an elite club of deep-space explorers. India was particularly proud that MOM (Mars Orbiter Mission) was developed with homegrown technology and for a bargain price of about £45 million - compared with Nasa's £1.5 billion for its Maven orbiter. Getting a spaceship successfully into orbit around Mars is no easy task. More than half the world's previous attempts - 23 out of 41 missions - have failed. India wanted this spacecraft to be a global advertisement for its ability in designing, planning and managing a difficult, deep-space mission."
I'm seriously impressed. If India can successfully carry out such a complex operation - and at the first attempt - maybe the first colony on the Red Planet will be a Vedic city! Someone weighing 100 kg on Earth would only tip the scales at 38 kg on Mars so TM "hoppers" could do some convincing-looking levitations when they build their first Dome.
