By Venkatachari Jagannathan

Sriharikota, Jul 22 (IANS): The Indian space scientists at the mission control room here were cautious but not tense, said a senior official. "There was no reason to be tense. We were cautious as usual," S. Somanath, Director, Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC), told IANS.

Queried about the additional 6,000 km orbit achieved by the rocket Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle-Mark III (GSLV-Mk III) for Chandrayaan-2, Somanath said, "Its designed to maximise the rocket's fuel use."

"The rocket architecture is simple. It has an in-built fail-safe mechanism. Further the per kg cost of the rocket is less than others," Somanath said.

While the space officials were glued to their computer screens during the flight, there was no tension visible on their faces.

Once the GSLV-Mk III injected Chandrayaan-2 in its defined orbit in a copybook style, the scientists got off their seats, smiled and congratulated each other.

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Chairman K. Sivan was all smiles.

On the rooftop of the media centre, ISRO officials and the mediapersons clapped when the rocket climbed up. There were people on the rooftops of the nearby buildings as well to witnessed the launch.