On July 14,2023 India’s third mission to the Moon was successfully carried out from the
Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Andhra Pradesh’s Sriharikota. A few weeks later, on August
5, the Lander entered the Lunar orbit. India’s Chandrayaan-3 has moved closer to the
surface of the Moon on August 20, after the Lander Module (LM) successfully completed its
second and final de-boosting operation.
The Lander has reached an orbit where the closest point to Moon is 25km and the farthest is
134km, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) confirmed on Sunday. The Lander
Module consisting of the lander (Vikram) and the rover (Pragyan) is currently about 113km
by 157km from the moon. ISRO told that the condition of Lander module is normal.
Since it is night on the moon, Chandrayaan-3 is set to land on the surface of the moon on
August 23,2023 at around 18.04 hours IST. There will be sunrise on that day. Both the
Lander and the Rover will use solar panels to generate power.
Sources tell that if there is problem in landing on August 23, then there will be an attempt
again after a month, because Chandrayaan 3 will have to wait for the next morning, which
will be in the next 28 days. ISRO had reduced the lunar orbit of the lander through
deboosting on August 18, 2023.
According to ISRO, it is turn to show ability at the time of landing. The Lander will make a
ˈsoft landingˈ on the south polar region of the moon from a height of 30km. During this the
speed will be controlled. Its speed at the beginning of the landing process is about 1.68km
per second, but this speed is very high on the surface of the moon.
ISRO said, that the Propulsion Module will study the radiation coming from the Earth.
Lander and Rover will do other experiments including the search for water on the surface.
The Propulsion Module will continue its journey in the current orbit for months or years.
On touching the surface of the Moon successfully, India will be the fourth nation after
United States, China and Russia to achieve this feet. Ahead of the historic day, ISRO, on
August 20, shared a tweet, telling how people across the globe can watch Chandrayaan-3
successfully completing its lunar mission.
Through a message on its official site, ISRO informed that the ̎eagerly anticipated event ̎will
be live broadcast on Wednesday starting from 17:27 hours IST. The live coverage will be
available via multiple platforms, including the ISRO Website, YouTube, ISRO's Facebook
page, and DD National TV channel.
ISRO added, In light of this historic event all the schools and institutions in the country are
expected to take an active part on the day. The institutions are directed to publicise this
event among the students and faculty members and arrange the LIVE streaming of
Chandrayaan-3 soft landing within the premises.
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