Giant leap for India: Wins vital race to moon
Mint looks at the unprecedented success of the Indian Space Research Organization (Isro) and what it means for India’s space programme. Chandrayaan-3 created history at 6.04 pm on 23 August when its lander, called Vikram, safely touched down on the lunar surface. India thus became only the fourth nation in the world, after the US, the former Soviet Union and China, to soft land an object on the moon (and the first to do so on the far side of earth’s natural satellite).
Chandrayaan-3 was launched on 14 July using Isro’s LMV3 rocket. The objective: to demonstrate soft landing and roving capabilities on the lunar surface. Besides, at ₹650 crore, the mission cost less than that other scientific hit—Oppenheimer ( ₹820 crore).
Vikram lander carries a rover, named Pragyan, which will move around and conduct chemical analyses of the surface of the moon near the landing site. The lander also carries payloads to study thermal conductivity, measure lunar seismic activity and estimate plasma density, among other activities. The experiments by Pragyan will be carried out over one lunar day (equivalent to 14 earth days).
The propulsion module which brought the spacecraft from its injected orbit to within 100 kilometres of the moon also has a scientific payload. This will look for exoplanets, or planets beyond our solar system. In September 2019 Chandrayaan-2 failed, in the last moments, to soft land the lander on the moon.
Chandrayaan-3 is a follow-up with same mission objective and architecture. Isro scientists spent four years analyzing and rectifying errors. The lander’s engine configuration was changed.
It was made sturdier and carried more fuel for any contingency. Isro has ambitious lunar plans. It wants to send a mission that
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