Here is what the propulsion spacecraft Chandrayaan-3 is doing as it soars far above the Moon. India’s third lunar exploration mission is called Chandrayaan-3. On August 23, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) launched it into orbit. The primary objective of the mission was to successfully land the Vikram Lander and the Pragyan Rover on the Moon’s surface. So far, only three nations have succeeded in doing this. This mission succeeds Chandrayaan-2, which sadly failed to softly touch down on the Moon in September of last year. The spaceship is still circling the Moon, though.
Chandrayaan-3: Stunning Images from Space
Chandrayaan-3 Mission:
— ISRO (@isro) September 9, 2023
Here is an image of the Chandrayaan-3 Lander taken by the Dual-frequency Synthetic Aperture Radar (DFSAR) instrument onboard the Chandrayaan-2 Orbiter on September 6, 2023.
More about the instrument: https://t.co/TrQU5V6NOq pic.twitter.com/ofMjCYQeso
There have been some fascinating new images of Chandrayaan-3 recently posted. On September 9, ISRO published these pictures on the social networking site X (formerly Twitter). The Chandrayaan-3 lander is not currently in operation, nevertheless. The equipment that depends on sunlight is in sleep mode since the area of the Moon where the mission landed is in darkness for two weeks.
Chandrayaan-3’s lander and its little rover Pragyan may awaken from their slumber when the Sun’s rays reappear. Officials from ISRO claim that these two have already mostly succeeded in achieving their key goals. The rover, Pragyan, successfully disengaged from its lander, Vikram, and even captured some images of the environs of the Moon.
It has happened before that an Indian Moon mission was intercepted from space. Chandrayaan-3 was also discovered earlier this month by NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, a satellite that captures high-definition photographs of the Moon while circling it.
The Chandrayaan-3 propulsion module, which was used to launch the Vikram lander and Pragyan rover, is still operational. With the SHAPE instrument aboard, it will investigate new goals including looking for alien life while in lunar orbit. It will observe Earth’s atmosphere while in the Moon’s orbit and collect information on the polarisation of light from our planet’s clouds. These findings may point to habitable planets for future colonisation or evidence of extraterrestrial life. Additionally, it makes it easier for the lander, rover, and Earth to communicate. This module, unlike its predecessor, contains just one piece of scientific equipment: lessons from Chandrayaan-2.
Exploration of the Moon in the Future
India has now joined the ranks of the Soviet Union, the United States, and China as the fourth nation to ever set foot on the moon. Additionally, future moon expeditions could be planned. As part of the Artemis programme, NASA, the American space agency, has supported a number of robotic missions. Some of these missions may make a lunar landing as soon as 2023. By the end of the 2020s, the Artemis programme hopes to create a permanent human presence on and around the Moon. The series’ first human surface mission, Artemis 3, is slated to launch in the latter half of 2025 or early 2026.
To find out more about the ice deposits in the Moon’s south pole, several nations, including India, are eager to explore the region. In order to house people and equipment, NASA intends to build one or more bases in this region utilizing lunar ice.
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