India's space agency successfully fired the main engine of its Mars Orbiter Mission spacecraft and completed a crucial maneuver that readied the automated probe to enter the Red Planet's orbit on Sept 24.

Along with eight smaller thrusters, the main engine on the craft also known as Mangalyaan is scheduled to fire for about 24 minutes along with eight small thrusters at about 7:17 a.m. India Standard Time on Wednesday, in order to slow the orbiter's speed and allow it to position itself above Mars.

If the $74-million mission succeeds, it will become the first ever to settle into Mars orbit on its first try, said a report in the Daily Mail, which also noted India will also distinguish itself as the first Asian country to reach Mars and the fourth nation to send an exploratory mission to the planet.

The Mars Orbiter craft and its five scientific instruments "are in good health. Periodic tests are being done on the different levels of autonomy built into the spacecraft for managing contingencies," said an Indian Space Research Organization news release. "At present, the radio distance between the spacecraft and the earth is 39 million kilometers [24.2 million miles]."

A signal traveling from Earth to the craft and back again takes about 4 minutes and 15 seconds. Soon, the High Gain Antenna of the spacecraft will be put in service for handling communications with the ground stations.

Mangalyaan is expected to enter orbit under the shadow of Mars, which will require it to use energy from an on-board battery. The spacecraft has so far generated and utilized about 800 watts of power from the sun.

The mission will enter the eclipse five minutes before the engine is ignited for the insertion maneuver, meaning there won't be any telemetry or other forms of communication between mission managers on Earth and the craft until Mangalyaan initiates contact again, expected at about 7:47 a.m.

Mangalyaan arrives at Mars only days after the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) spacecraft reached its own orbit around the planet.

The Mars Orbiter Mission was launched on board a PSLV-C25 rocket on Nov. 5, 2013.