India’s Historic Chandrayaan-3 Moon Landing

By Divya Venkat | December 2023

India is the first ever country to successfully land on the Southern Polar Region of the moon with the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft, making it the fourth nation to achieve a soft landing on a lunar surface. The South Pole of the moon is believed to potentially contain water or ice deposits that could be used for rocket fuel or even drinking water (Wattles, 2023).

The Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft consists of a lander (named Vikram), rover (named Pragyan) and propulsion module. The lander and rover are meant to operate for approximately two weeks, and the propulsion module is still in orbit and transmitting data to Earth (Howell, 2023).

Narendra Modi, the Indian Prime Minister, commented that this mission belongs to everyone and is a big step for India in its human-centric approach to space exploration. This mission aimed to gather data about the lunar surface and detect any seismic activity in the moon core (Howell, 2023).

“Today, the whole world has recognized India’s scientific spirit, India’s technology and India’s scientific temperament,” said Modi after the Aug. 23 landing. “Chandrayaan Maha Abhiyan is not only India’s success, but a success of the entire humanity.”

Given Russia’s recent failure in their Luna 25 mission to land on the moon, India has emerged as a new space power. Many countries are planning missions to the moon for the near future, bringing a revival of lunar exploration (Wattles, 2023).

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is now focused on rover-centric missions. Established in 1969, the ISRO is building upon its past space exploration efforts, such as its inaugural rocket launch in 1963 as a predecessor agency (Howell, 2023).

In June 2023, ISRO joined a NASA-led group called Artemis Accords, which aims to foster peaceful robotic and human exploration of the moon (Howell, 2023).

The White House suggested that the data collected by the Chandrayaan-3 may also prove valuable for future Artemis missions, especially more human landings on the moon (Howell, 2023).

The rover carried scientific instruments with the ability to analyze the lunar surface and conduct experiments (Howell, 2023). The Chandrayaan-3 mission had an estimated cost of approximately $77 million USD. According to the official ISRO website, the mission aims to achieve three primary objectives:

1. A safe landing on the moon's surface.

2. A demonstration of rover operations.

3. The performance of scientific experiments on-site.

To execute the mission, a propulsion module transported the Vikram lander and the Pragyan rover to the moon's South Pole. They entered lunar orbit before the lander achieved a successful soft landing on Aug. 23, 2023. Over the course of 14 Earth days, which is equivalent to 1 lunar day, the lander and rover conducted scientific experiments on the lunar surface (Howell, 2023).

The spacecraft package incorporated advanced technologies, including hazard detection on the rover, a landing leg mechanism for a gentle touchdown, as well as altimeters and velocity instruments for altitude and speed estimation above the moon. ISRO conducted various technology tests to simulate lunar conditions, with a focus on exposing instruments to cold temperatures resembling the moon and performing simulated lander leg tests under different landing conditions (Howell, 2023).

India is committed to advancing space exploration and contributing to the global scientific community. The Chandrayaan-3 mission is a part of India’s space program that reflects the country's growing expertise in space exploration.

References:

Dooley, D. (2023, Nov. 4). “Chandrayaan.” Encyclopædia Britannica, https://www.britannica.com/technology/Chandrayaan

Howell, E. (2023, July 10). “Chandrayaan-3: A complete guide to India’s third mission to the Moon,” Space.com. https://www.space.com/chandrayaan-3-indian-moon-mission-rover

Wattles, J. (2023, Aug. 24). “Chandrayaan-3 landing: India becomes the fourth country ever to land a spacecraft on the moon.” CNN, http://www.cnn.com/2023/08/23/world/chandrayaan-3-lunar-landing-attempt-scn/index.html