Chandrayaan-3 Landing Highlights: What Chandrayaan-3's Vikram Lander And Pragyan Rover Will Do On The Moon
Chandrayaan 3 Moon Landing Live: Chandrayaan-3 successfully landed on the Moon on August 23, 2023, at 6:04 pm IST, making India the first country to softly land a spacecraft on the Moon’s south pole.
Pawan K Goenka, the chairman of the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (INSPACe) on Thursday called Chandrayaan-3’s successful soft landing on the lunar south pole a “picture-perfect landing”.
Speaking on the Chandrayaan-3 mission and its successful soft landing on the South Pole region of the Moon, former ISRO Chairman G Madhavan Nair said, “The Pragyan rover has moved out and it is capable of travelling around the landing site to collect various data which will be useful for the scientific community.”
With Chandrayaan-3's historic soft landing on the Moon's south pole, India becomes the first country to softly land a spacecraft on the lunar south pole. The upcoming missions in India's space programme are the Aditya-L1 mission, Gaganyaan programme, Lunar Polar Exploration Mission (LUPEX), or Chandrayaan-4, Mangalyaan-2, and Shukrayaan, among others.
Chandrayaan-3's propulsion module separated from the lander module after they reached a lunar circular orbit of 100 kilometres. While the lander module continued on its journey towards the Moon, the propulsion module remained in lunar orbit, serving as a backup communications relay for the lander and the rover. The propulsion module has a payload which will search for Earth-like signatures from exoplanets to see if they could be inhabited in the future.
Both Chandrayaan-3's Vikram lander and Pragyan rover have successfully landed on the Moon. The lander will remain fixed in one position and carry out measurements of thermal properties of elements on the lunar surface, measure the seismicity around the landing site, describe the structure of the lunar crust and mantle, and study the gas and plasma environment. The rover will help determine the elemental composition of the lunar soil, and rocks around the landing site, and perform chemical analysis to determine the elemental and mineralogical composition of the lunar surface.
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has congratulated India on Chandrayaan-3.
Chandrayaan-3's Pragyan rover rolled out of the Vikram lander over four hours after the spacecraft landed on the lunar south pole.
Chandrayaan-3 has shared the first image of its historic landing site on the lunar south pole. In the image, one of the legs of the Vikram lander, and its accompanying shadow, can be seen.
Chandrayaan-3's Pragyan rover will shortly roll out of the Vikram lander.
Chandrayaan-3's Pragyan rover is set to roll out soon
After Chandrayaan-3 successfully landed on the lunar south pole, ISRO Chief S Somanath said that the Indian space agency's next mission is Aditya-L1, which is getting ready at Sriharikota.
Chandrayaan-3's Pragyan rover will emerge from the lander three-and-a-half hours after lunar dust has settled down, experts told PTI.
Chandrayaan-3 has softly landed on the Moon, marking a historic moment for India. India has become the first country to softly land a spacecraft on the lunar surface.
The vertical descent phase of Chandrayaan-3 is set to begin.
The sensors onboard the lander module are performing normally, ISRO announced in the livestream.
Chandrayaan-3 is in the middle of the rough braking phase. The attitude control phase will begin shortly.
As Chandrayaan-3's powered descent begins, the lander module is continuously capturing pictures of the Earth.
Chandrayaan-3's powered descent towards the lunar surface started after the automatic landing sequence was initiated.
Chandrayaan-3 has entered the rough-breaking phase.
ISRO has started the livestream of Chandrayaan-3's landing event. People can watch the event by clicking on the embedded video below.
Chandrayaan-2 is serving as a backup communicatios relay for Chandrayaan-3. Two-way communication is established between the two spacecraft in lunar orbit.
Rakesh Sharma, the first Indian to go to space, said on the day of Chandrayaan-3's landing that he is confident of the fact that Chandrayaan-3 will have a safe landing, IANS reported. He will share his thoughts on Chandrayaan-3, along with astronaut Sunita Williams and ISRO Chief S Somanath, who will be present at Chandrayaan-3's landing event to be livestreamed on the National Geographic Channel and Disney+Hotstar.
Chandrayaan-3 is set to make history on August 23, 2023, at 6:04 pm IST, by becoming the first spacecraft to softly land on the lunar south pole. Soft landing means that Chandrayaan-3 will aim to softly touch down on the Moon without its components being harmed. A soft landing will ensure that all the payloads on Chandrayaan-3 remain functional.
Shanmuga Subramanian, an engineer from Chennai, who successfully identified the debris formed from the crash of Chandrayaan-2’s Vikram, and contacted the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) project to reveal his discovery, said on August 22, 2023, that the day of Chandrayaan-3’s landing might be a historic day for India, but the country must remember APJ Abdul Kalam, a former president of India, because it was on his suggestion that the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) included the Moon Impact Probe (MIP) on Chandrayaan-1.
Subramanian also wrote that Kalam was closely involved with Chandrayaan-1.
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will initiate the automatic landing sequence after the Lander Module (LM) reaches its designated point at 5:44 pm IST. Initiatiang the automatic landing sequence will allow the throttleable engines to be powered for lunar descent.
Students of Vidya Bal Bhawan Public School in Mayur Vihar-3 wave the Tiranga, raise slogans and play musical instruments as the nation awaits the successful lunar landing of Chandrayaan-3 today.
Prayers are being offered at Om Sri Sai Balaji Temple and Cultural Center in Monroe, New Jersey for the successful landing of Chandrayaan3 Mission. Members of the Indian-American community say, "It's a proud moment for all of our Indian community. Hopefully, everything will be okay. Best wishes to the Chandrayaan team," as quoted by ANI.
Sadhus perform havan in Varanasi for the successful landing of Chandrayaan-3.
Havan was performed at Hanuman Temple in Kadodara, Surat for the successful lunar landing of Chandrayaan-3.
A large number of devotees arrive at Bageshwar Dham in MP's Chhatarpur, to offer special prayers for the successful lunar landing of Chandrayaan-3. A devotee, Rajiv Sharma says, "Thousands of devotees have come here to offer prayers..." Another devotee, Mayank Sahu says, "Special prayers were held here for the success of Chandrayaan..."
Students in Jammu organized an exhibition and sang songs for the successful landing of Chandrayaan-3.
Chandrayaan-3 is almost identical to Chandrayaan-2, except that the former does not carry an orbiter. Chandrayaan-3's Vikram lander has more robust legs, better software, and enhanced sensors compared to Chandrayaan-2's lander. These changes were made to ensure that the Vikram lander successfully lands on the lunar south pole, unlike the lander of Chandrayaan-2.
Chandrayaan-3's primary objective is to put a lander and a rover on the Moon's highlands near its south pole, and to demonstrate end-to-end landing and roving capabilities. Apart from demonstrating safe and soft landing and roving capabilities on the lunar surface, Chandrayaan-3's objectives are to conduct in-situ scientific experiments, and develop and demonstrate new technologies required for interplanetary missions.
Chandrayaan-3 is expected to make a historic touchdown on the lunar surface on August 23, 2023, at 6:04 pm IST. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will start streaming the event for Chandrayaan-3's landing live at 5:20 pm IST on August 23. People can watch the livestream on the official YouTube channel of ISRO, the space agency's official website or Facebook account, or on DD National.
Chandrayaan-3 is expected to land on the Moon today, at 6:04 pm IST. Once Chandrayaan-3's Vikram lander lands on the Moon's south pole, the rover ramp will be performed so that the Pragyan rover can come out and move on the lunar surface.
Chandrayaan-3, India's third lunar exploration mission, is scheduled to make a historic touchdown on the Moon's south pole on August 23, 2023, at 6:04 pm IST. This will make India the first country to achieve a soft landing on the lunar south pole.
Background
Chandrayaan 3 Landing Live Updates: Chandrayaan-3, India’s third lunar exploration mission, is set to land on the lunar south pole on August 23, 2023, at 6:04 pm IST, making India the first country to softly land a spacecraft on the Moon’s south pole. The entire country is full of “energy and excitement” because Chandrayaan-3’s landing will be a historic touchdown. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) made several changes to the Vikram lander in order to avoid the mistakes that occurred during the landing of Chandrayaan-2.
Chandrayaan-3 is almost identical to Chandrayaan-2, except that Chandrayaan-2 included an orbiter, but Chandrayaan-3 is not carrying an orbiter.
Chandrayaan-3 Landing Live: How Chandrayaan-3 Is Different From Chandrayaan-2
To ensure the success of Chandrayaan-3, ISRO has implemented a series of design and capability changes in the Vikram lander, aiming for strategic enhancements that increase the likelihood of a successful landing on the Moon's south pole. These modifications to Vikram's design are geared towards achieving a safe lunar landing. Key adjustments involve reinforcing the landing legs, enhancing sensors, optimizing the solar array, upgrading software capabilities, refining engine throttling, and fine-tuning engine configuration.
In contrast to Chandrayaan-2's Vikram, which was equipped with five 800 Newton engines, the Vikram lander of Chandrayaan-3 features four throttleable engines. ISRO has integrated a Laser Doppler Velocimeter for precision in guiding the autonomous landing manoeuvre. Additionally, the landing legs have been bolstered for increased strength, and a redundancy mechanism has been introduced to ensure autonomous landing even in the event of complete sensor and engine failure.
A throttleable engine offers the advantage of adjustable thrust. The incorporation of redundancy means that supplementary components, which may not serve a functional purpose, have been included to safeguard an autonomous landing should sensors and engines experience failure. The Laser Doppler Velocimeter is a specialized sensor integrated into the lander. It functions by gauging the frequency of light scattered by minuscule particles in a fluid to measure instantaneous fluid velocities. For Vikram, this sensor will determine the velocity of the lunar atmosphere.
The sensors onboard Chandrayaan-3's Vikram have been upgraded to be more advanced and responsive compared to those on Chandrayaan-2's lander. This enhancement equips the lander to make quicker and more informed decisions during the crucial landing phase.
Chandrayaan-3 Landing Live: When And How To Watch Online
For those eager to witness the event, ISRO will commence the live-streaming coverage of Chandrayaan-3's landing at 5:20 pm IST on August 23. Interested individuals can catch the live stream on ISRO's official YouTube channel, the agency's official website, its official Facebook account, or on DD National.
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