Ind, US set up joint working group for Mars studies

New Delhi, Dec 3 (PTI) India and the US have set up an ISRO-NASA joint working group to explore the possibility of enhancing cooperation for the study of Mars, the government said today. Jitendra Singh, the Minister of State for the Department of Space, said that Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and NASA, respectively, the space agencies of India and the USA, are working together to realise a Dual-Frequency Synthetic Aperture Radar mission for Earth observation. India recently launched its Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) -- Mangalyaan -- while USA's National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) sent its own MAVEN probe to the planet. "The two agencies have established an 'ISRO-NASA Mars Working Group' to explore the possibility of enhancing cooperation in Mars exploration," Singh said in a written response in Lok Sabha. Singh also said ISRO is pursuing international cooperation on the peaceful uses of outer space and that cooperative agreements had been signed with 35 countries. "The areas of cooperation include Remote Sensing of Earth, Satellite Communication, Launch Services, Telemetry and Tracking Support, Space Exploration, Space Law and Capacity Building," he said. The minister said India is also cooperating with China on space with an MoU having been signed with the country in June this year although no agreement is in place between the two. "India has not signed any agreement with China to develop remote-sensing satellites for disaster management and preparedness. "However, an MoU has been signed with China National Space Agency on cooperation," the minister said. PTI