Namira Salim, Pakistan explorer commends ISRO on Mars Orbiter success

Namira Salim, a Pakistani explorer expected to become her country's first person in space congratulated India on Thursday on reaching Mars on its maiden attempt.

India won the Asian space race to the Red Planet on Wednesday when its unmanned Mangalyaan successfully entered the Red Planet's orbit after a 10-month journey on a budget of just $74 million.

Despite having a space program since 1961 Pakistan has not yet launched a satellite into orbit.

But Namira Salim, the first Pakistani explorer to reach both poles said India's achievement had made the region proud.

"The success of the Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM), Mangalyaan, is a giant leap for South Asia," said Salim, who has booked a ticket on UK hedonist Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic space project planned for 2015.

"I commend the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), and all its scientists and researchers for not only achieving this astronomical feat, but also for achieving it in the most cost-effective manner."

Pakistan has not yet officially congratulated India. The neighbours have fought three wars, two of them over the disputed territory of Kashmir.

Relations between the two countries have taken a turn for the worse after Pakistan's top envoy met Kashmiri separatist leaders in August, with India responding by calling off talks between the countries' foreign secretaries.

NASA Cassini: Carolyn Porco talks about her life and experiences as a Saturn explorer - Video

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This interview, in which Porco discusses her fascination with astronomy and planets, and how that fascination led her down her remarkable career path, was conducted by space historian Andrew Chalkin, and it is just so wonderful to watch.

Porco's love of scientific investigation and passion for what she does is so compelling, it's hard not to get lost in her stories of coming up in the Bronx, her accounts of past missions, and her continued enthusiasm for the science that she and the Cassini team are busy conducting to this day.

More information on the Saturn and the Cassini mission

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Atop a barge, the space shuttle full-scale replica Explorer nears the completion of its eight-day journey from the Kennedy Space Center destined for permanent retention at Space Center Houston, near the NASA Johnson Space Center.