Chandrayaan 3 Launch Date

Landing So Smooth: Chandraayan And Its Moon Landing!

By Divya Science, Space

Chandrayaan 3 was successfully launched by ISRO on July 14th at 2.35 PM. It was launched in Sriharikota India from Satish Dhawan Space Center and reached its destination after a long journey of 40 days. Soft landing on the moon is always challenging when the terrain is quite cratered like it is at the south pole of the moon. As compared to the equator, issues with communication at the South Pole also arise. The Chandrayaan 3 entails an indigenous Propulsion Module, a small Rover i.e., Pragyan, and a Lander Module, Vikram.

Chandrayaan 3 Mission Timeline

Chandrayaan 3 took off on 14 July 2023 from Satish Dhawan Space Centre.
On August 5 entered the lunar orbit.
The lander module was separated from the propulsion module on August 17.
On August 18 and 20, the first and second deboosting maneuvers took place. This process is vital for the proper and safe landing of the spacecraft.
The lander on August 23, landed at 69.36 Degrees S and 32.34 Degrees E on the moon’s south pole
The rover Pragyan began its exploration activities on August 24.
Pragyan confirmed the existence of sulphur on the moon through the technique of LIBS on the 30th of August.

The ISRO had conducted two missions to the moon previously named Chandrayaan 1 and Chandrayaan 2. In 2008 Chandrayaan 1 was launched and lasted till 2009. In 2019, Chandrayaan 2 was launched with the mission to attempt a soft landing on the moon however failed. Chandrayaan finally achieved its goal of making a soft landing during its 3rd attempt on August 23, 2023.

On August 29, a chart was shared by ISRO highlighting the numerous elements that were found on the surface. Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscope instrument perceived the existence of a number of elements like Aluminium (AI), Iron (Fe), Titanium (Ti), Calcium (Ca), Manganese (Mn), Sulphur (S), Silicon (Si), and Oxygen.

After the US, Russia, and China, India was the fourth country to make a landing on the surface of the moon successfully. After the landing, the lander named Vikram and the rover named Pragyan performed a number of tasks on the lunar surface, like discovering the occurrence of elements, carefully recording temperature variations, listening to activities around it, etc.

On September 2, 2023, Pragyan Rover was put to sleep and its activation is predictable on September 22, 2023. The 14 days was considered as the Chandrayaan 3 mission life expectancy however the ISRO is hoping for Vikram Lander’s revival. Due to extreme darkness and freezing temperatures as low as -200 degrees, the return of the rover is unlikely but the ISRO space agency says it can happen if solar panels react to light once lunar night ends.