ISRO's Chandrayaan-3 Reveals Stunning First Images of the Moon's Enigmatic Landscape

2023/08/07 03:36

Introduction
What is Chandrayaan-3?
Objectives of Chandrayaan-3
First Images of Chandrayaan-3
Future Plans for Chandrayaan-3

Chandrayaan-3: India's Second Attempt to Land on the Moon

India's space agency, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), has released the first images of the Moon captured by its Chandrayaan-3 mission, which was launched on July 14, 2023. The mission is a follow-on to Chandrayaan-2, which attempted to land a rover on the lunar south pole in 2019 but failed due to a technical glitch in the final descent stage. Chandrayaan-3 aims to demonstrate India's capability to soft land on the lunar surface and explore its geology and environment with a rover .

What is Chandrayaan-3?

Chandrayaan-3 is a lunar exploration mission that consists of two modules: a lander and a rover. designed to carry the rover from the lunar orbit to the surface and provide power and communication support. Particle X-Ray Spectrometer (APXS) and a Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscope (LIBS). will analyze the elemental composition of the lunar soil and rocks. The mission also has a third component: a
propulsion module, which carries the lander and rover from the Earth orbit to the lunar orbit. SHAPE) instrument, which will study the polarization of sunlight reflected by the Earth.
Chandrayaan-3 was launched by ISRO's most powerful rocket, the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark III (GSLV Mk III), from the Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.The launch was successful and placed the propulsion module in a highly elliptical orbit around the Earth.After several orbit-raising maneuvers, the propulsion module reached the vicinity of the Moon and injected the lander and rover into a 100 km circular orbit around the Moon.

Objectives of Chandrayaan-3

The primary objective of Chandrayaan-3 is to demonstrate India's ability to soft land on the Moon and operate a rover on its surface.This is a challenging task, as the Moon has no atmosphere to slow down the spacecraft, and its gravity is only one -sixth of that on Earth.The lander has to autonomously perform a series of maneuvers to reduce its speed and altitude, while avoiding obstacles and finding a safe landing site.
The secondary objective of Chandrayaan-3 is to conduct scientific experiments on the lunar surface using the rover. Chandrayaan-2, which is still operational in lunar orbit since 2019. The orbiter will relay the data from the rover to ISRO's Indian Deep Space Network (IDSN) on Earth.
The tertiary objective of Chandrayaan-3 is to observe the Earth from lunar orbit using the SHAPE instrument on the propulsion module. The instrument will measure the polarization of sunlight reflected by different regions of Earth, such as oceans, continents, clouds, and ice caps This will help in understanding how habitable planets can be detected and characterized by future space telescopes.

First Images of Chandrayaan-3

ISRO has released two sets of images taken by Chandrayaan-3: one by the lander's camera during its descent The images show different views of the lunar landscape near the landing site, which is located in a flat plain between two craters named Manzinus C and Simpelius N.
The lander's camera captured images at various altitudes during its descent, showing features such as craters, hills, boulders, and shadows. The lander successfully touched down on July 16, 2023, at 11:32 IST (05:52 UTC), making India only the fourth country in history to achieve a soft landing on the Moon after Russia, USA, and China.
The rover's camera took images after it was deployed from the lander's ramp on July 17, 2023, at 12:15 IST (06:45 UTC). The images show how the rover unfolded its solar panels and wheels and started moving on the lunar surface The images also show some close-up views of rocks and soil near the rover. The rover has a planned mission life of one lunar day (about 14 Earth days), during which it will cover a distance of up to 500 meters from the lander.

Future Plans for Chandrayaan-3

ISRO has announced that Chandrayaan-3 will continue to perform its scientific tasks for as long as possible, depending on the availability of power and communication. The lander and rover are expected to operate for at least one lunar day, while the propulsion module and the orbiter will remain in lunar orbit for several months or years. ISRO has also stated that Chandrayaan-3 is a stepping stone towards its future interplanetary missions, such as Aditya-L1 (a solar observatory), Mangalyaan-2 (a Mars orbiter and lander ), and Shukrayaan-1 (a Venus orbiter).
Chandrayaan-3 is a remarkable achievement for India's space program, as it showcases its technological progress and scientific ambition. second attempt to land on the Moon. Chandrayaan-3 is a proud moment for India and a valuable contribution to the global exploration of the Moon .