This Wednesday, ISRO’s spacecraft, Chandrayaan-3, is completing its Journey to the Moon by landing softly on the lunar surface at 6:04 pm.
Ever since ISRO launched Chandrayaan-3 on June 14, the world has been looking forward to India creating its historical moment. Meanwhile, ISRO has succeeded in reducing the orbit of the Vikram lander, the lander module of the spacecraft. And now, ISRO is expecting to touch down on the surface of the Moon on August 23 at 6:04 pm. This moment is going to be marked as a golden page in Indian history.
The ISRO, given its statement on X (formally Twitter):
“The soft landing of Chandrayaan-3 is a monumental moment that not only fuels curiosity but also sparks a passion for youth.”
Now, after completing the second and last deboosting manoeuvre on Sunday, Vikram Lander is going to go through internal checks first. After which, it will wait for the sunrise at the designated landing site for the final landing attempt.
Information about the two modules of the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft:
Lander: The first module of the spacecraft, designated to function for one lunar day (which is equal to 14 days on Earth). It is 1,749 kg by weight, including the rover, and is equipped with numerous sensors to ensure a smooth touchdown. It has been named after the Father of the Indian Space Programme, Dr. Vikram Sarabhai, whereas, ‘Vikramk’ was the name of the former lunar mission spacecraft’s lander module as well.
Rover: The rover module of the spacecraft is named ‘Pragyan’, which means ‘wisdom’ in Sanskrit. It is a three-wheeled vehicle equipped with instruments to fetch and provide data related to the moon’s surface. It has the ability to acquire data on the elemental composition of the atmosphere and has a weight of 26 kg.