India's Mars mission

• India is the first Asian country and the fourth in the world to undertake a mission to the red planet in the hope of finding methane and minerals.
• The cost of India's mission to Mars is Rs 450 crore (about $72.9 million).
• The Indian-made rocket — Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle-C25 (PSLV-C25) is around 44 metres tall and weighs around 320 tonnes.

• The scientific mission will explore Mars's surface features, morphology, or the study of organisms, mineralogy, the study of minerals, and Martian atmosphere.
• The rocket will cover a distance of about 400 million km.
• The Mars orbiter will orbit the Earth till November 30 and then its motors will be fired to push it towards the red planet.
• For nearly 300 days, the motor will be off while the spacecraft floats through the inky void towards Mars.
• When the spacecraft nears Mars, the motors will be restarted and fired again to carry out manoeuvres to put it in Martian orbit around September 2014.