Amitabha Ghosh, the head of the science operations working group at Nasa Mars Exploration Rover Mission has advised Indian scientists to be cautiously optimistic about the planned mission to Mars this year. He told the Indian scientists not to be disappointed if the mission does not work to perfection.

Ghosh said, "On this Mars mission, scientists should not be outcome-driven. View it as an exciting journey, another step to push back the frontiers of space. At Nasa, we have experienced many reversals but the Mars programme did not stop. India, too, must keep in mind that it might not be perfect."

Ghosh said that the going to Mars is a logical next step for India's space program after the successful Moon mission Chandrayaaan-1. If successful, the mission will help India enter the elite club of nations including the US, Russia, Europe and Japan, who have conducted such missions. Scientists have said that the mission to Mars in the year 2013 will include an orbital probe will be put around the red planet to study its climate and geology.

According to plans presented to the government by the space agency the spacecraft will be launched during October-November 2013 and it will enter the Mars orbit by September 2014.