Chandrayaan-3, the succeeding mission to Chandrayaan-2, is set to launch on Friday, July 14, 2023. The Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO's) Moon mission aims to put a lander and a rover on the Moon's highlands near its south pole, and demonstrate end-to-end landing and roving capabilities. The Launch Vehicle Mark III (LVM3), also known as Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark III, will launch Chandrayaan-3 at 2:45 pm IST on Friday.
Chandrayaan-3 consists of a lander, a rover and a propulsion module, and weighs a total of 3,900 kilograms. The rover is similar to Chandrayaan-2's Vikram rover, but improvements have been made to help ensure a safe landing.
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Chandrayaan-3: When and how to watch online
The electrical tests on the vehicle assembly of LVM3-M4 and Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft have been completed. People who wish to watch the launch live from the Launch View Gallery at Satish Dhawan Space Centre can register themselves at ivg.shar.gov.in/.
Those who wish to watch the livestream online can witness the launch in real time on the official YouTube channel of ISRO, or on Doordarshan.
ISRO Chairman S Somanath has said that Chandrayaan-3 is expected to make a soft-landing on the Moon on August 23 or 24.
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The objectives of Chandrayaan-3, apart from demonstrating a safe and soft landing and roving capabilities on the lunar surface, is to conduct in-situ scientific experiments, and develop and demonstrate new technologies required for interplanetary missions.
The Chandrayaan-3 lander has been designed in a way such that it can land softly in the Moon at a specified site, and deploy the rover, whose aim is to conduct in-situ chemical analysis of the lunar surface. The propulsion module will carry the lander module to the final 100-kilometre circular orbit. After reaching this orbit, the lander module and the propulsion module will separate.
The propulsion module, after separation, will remain in orbit around the Moon, and act as a communications relay satellite, NASA says on its website.
The lander, rover and propulsion modules will carry their own scientific payloads.
According to NASA, the propulsion module is a box-like structure and will be mounted with a large solar panel on one side and a large cylinder on top. The cylinder, called the Intermodule Adapter Cone, will act as a mounting structure for the lander.
At the bottom of the propulsion module, the main thruster nozzle is located.
The box-shaped lander has four landing legs, four landing thrusters, a number of sensors to ensure a safe touchdown, and a suite of cameras to avoid hazards and have positional knowledge.
The lander is also equipped with an X band antenna which will ensure communications.
The rover is rectangle-shaped, and has six wheels and a navigation camera.