ISRO’s Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft landed on the Moon softly Wednesday evening. The Chandrayaan-2 lander crashed four years ago.At 6:04 pm on August 23, ISRO announced that space enthusiasts worldwide will be able to watch the Chandrayaan-3 landing. Live broadcasts of the Chandrayaan-3 landing will be broadcast on the official ISRO website, YouTube channel, Facebook page, and DD National starting at 5:27 pm.
12:54 (IST)25 AUG 2023 Here are five unknown facts about Chandrayaan and other moon missions
There have been a lot of debates about India’s space programme and Moon missions since Chandrayaan-3 launched. Here are some facts you may not be aware of.
Chandrayaan-1 was marked with the Moon by Kalam.
Chandrayaan-1, the first Indian space mission to the moon, was an orbiter launched in 2008. Former ISRO chairman G Madhavan Nair recounted that Kalam asked scientists what proof Chandrayaan-1 had of reaching the moon.
10:41 (IST)25 AUG 2023 Did Chandrayaan-3 have a connection to Ahmedabad?
In the Chandrayaan-3 Moon mission, which will land near the unexplored lunar south pole on Wednesday (August 23), the ISRO Space Applications Centre (SAC) and Physical Research Laboratory (PRL) will play a critical role. Dr. Vikram Sarabhai, the father of the Indian space programme, founded both institutions in Ahmedabad.
A short film called Chandrayaan 2 was screened at the Nehru Planetarium in New Delhi on August 3, 2023. (PTI)
The lander’s hazard detection and avoidance camera and processing algorithm were created by ISRO SAC.
Four of SAC’s eight camera systems for Chandrayaan-3 are on the lander and one on the rover. These five cameras will capture and share images. The landing relied on three other lander cameras.
18:53 24 AUG 2023 : One day after the Vikram lander made a successful landing close to the Moon’s south pole, ISRO has confirmed that all mission systems are operating normally and that Chandrayaan-3 is progressing according to plan. Additionally, the Pragyan rover has started exploring the Moon.
Here is how the Lander Imager Camera captured the moon's image just prior to touchdown. pic.twitter.com/PseUAxAB6G
— ISRO (@isro) August 24, 2023
17:22 PM : Leaving the Chandrayaan-3 lander, the 26-kilogram six-wheel Pragyan rover began its lunar exploration after the dust settled. The lander and rover will conduct many important scientific experiments and collect data from near the lunar south pole for 14 Earth days. Some of its experiments are listed here.
04:18 PM : Kerala’s Latin Church recalls space saga Chandrayaan 3
The Kerala Latin Church, a major Catholic denomination, is excited about Chandrayaan-3 because they played a unique role in India’s space saga. As India was dreaming of a Moon mission or Mars expedition and its space programme was in its infancy, the Latin Church generously donated a parish church and a bishop’s house to the Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launch Station (TERLS). Latin Archdiocese Vicar General Fr Eugene H Pereira said the church and its faithful have always prioritized national development despite their joy over the success of the Moon mission.
A date has been set for the launch of Chandrayaan 3
Chandrayaan-3 was launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre Second Launch Pad in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh, on July 14, 2023 at 2:35 pm IST. The spacecraft entered lunar orbit on 5 August 2023.
India became the first nation to land a spacecraft near the lunar south pole. After the US, USSR, and China, India became the fourth nation to softly land on the Moon.
Recap of the landing
- Four phases of “15 minutes of terror” preceded Chandrayaan-3’s soft landing on the Moon:
- As the lander approached the lunar surface, it tilted from horizontal to vertical while covering 3.48 kilometres at 7.43 kilometres above the surface at a speed of about 2,800 km/h.
- Chandrayaan-2 lost control during the attitude hold and fine-braking phases and will travel 28.52 kilometres horizontally in 175 seconds.
- The final descent of the fully vertical lander on the Moon.
15:38 (IST) Aug 24
Here is a timeline of the decades-long Space Race depicted in the Chandrayaan 3 script
15:33 (IST) Aug 24
ISRO Announces ‘Aditya’ solar mission after successful Moon mission.
“Mission Aditya will launch in the first week of September,” the ISRO chief told ANI a day after India’s first lunar landing mission succeeded. The crew module and crew escape capability will be demonstrated by September or October, followed by many test missions until we launch our first manned space mission (Gaganyaan) in 2025.” When the ‘Vikram’ lander touched down on the moon’s south face, Somanath said his emotions were hard to describe. Somanath expressed joy, accomplishment, and gratitude for all the scientists who made this mission a success.
15:24 (IST) Aug 24
PM Modi: Chandrayaan-3’s soft moon landing is humanity’s success at BRICS Summit
The soft landing of Chandrayaan-3 at the South Pole of the Moon was a global success, according to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. My friend Ramaphosa has praised India’s lunar mission, and I’ve felt this since yesterday. PM Modi thanked Ramaphosa for his heartfelt congratulations and expressed pride in Chandrayaan. On Chandrayaan-3, the South African president said, “…We congratulated India yesterday on landing the lunar module on the Moon…”.
#WATCH | ISRO chief S Somanath says, "Pragyan Rover has two instruments both are related to elemental composition findings on the moon as well as chemical compositions…Moreover, it will do the roving over the surface. We will also do a robotic path planning exercise which is… pic.twitter.com/MhnuuuUXB7
— ANI (@ANI) August 24, 2023
#WATCH | ISRO chief S Somanath says, "Pragyan Rover has two instruments both are related to elemental composition findings on the moon as well as chemical compositions…Moreover, it will do the roving over the surface. We will also do a robotic path planning exercise which is… pic.twitter.com/MhnuuuUXB7
— ANI (@ANI) August 24, 2023
