NEW DELHI — A day after an engine anomaly slowed its progress, India’s Mars Orbiter successfully raised its orbit to an apogee above 118,000 km (73,000 mi.) on Nov. 12. The country’s first Mars orbiter suffered a setback on Nov. 11 as attempts were made to raise the spacecraft’s orbit around Earth to built momentum for its trip to Mars. A minor problem with the liquid fuel thruster caused the 1,350-kg (3,000-lb.) vehicle to fall short of the mark.
If the nuclear-capable Agni V mission has signaled the arrival of India as a missile power, the world's largest democracy is hoping its next multiple-warhead variant will upgrade the country's strategic posture from dissuasion to credible deterrence against China. Two successful tests of its 5,000-km (3,106-mi.)-range Agni-V missile have paved the way for India to venture into a longer-range intercontinental nuclear-capable ballistic missile program, which will probably be officially called Agni VI.
