Chandrayaan-3 Produces First-Ever Temperature-Depth Profile Of Moon's South Pole. Know More

Chandrayaan-3: ChaSTE has measured the temperature profile of the lunar topsoil around the Moon’s south pole. These observations are expected to help scientists understand the Moon's thermal behaviour

Chandrayaan-3's graph shows the variation of lunar surface temperature with depth. ChaSTE's probe recorded the temperature variations of the lunar surface and near-surface at various depths. Chandrayaan-3 has produced the first temperature-depth profile of the Moon’s south pole.

Source : X/@ISRO

Chandrayaan-3: The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has released the first observations from the Chandra’s Surface Thermophysical Experiment (ChaSTE) payload on Chandrayaan-3’s Vikram lander. ChaSTE has measured the temperature profile of the lunar topsoil around the Moon’s south pole, ISRO said in a mission update. These scientific observations are expected to help scientists understand the thermal behaviour of the lunar surface. 

ChaSTE is equipped with a temperature probe which can penetrate into lunar soil up to a depth of 10 centimetres beneath the Moon’s surface. Not only can ChaSTE exhibit a controlled penetration mechanism, but is also fitted with 10 individual temperature sensors. 

Chandrayaan-3 Mission:
Here are the first observations from the ChaSTE payload onboard Vikram Lander.

ChaSTE (Chandra's Surface Thermophysical Experiment) measures the temperature profile of the lunar topsoil around the pole, to understand the thermal behaviour of the moon's… pic.twitter.com/VZ1cjWHTnd

— ISRO (@isro) August 27, 2023

ISRO has released a graph which shows the variation of lunar surface temperature with depth. The probe recorded the temperature variations of the lunar surface and near-surface at various depths. According to ISRO, Chandrayaan-3 has produced the first temperature-depth profile of the Moon’s south pole.

 

Chandrayaan-3 has produced the first temperature-depth profile of the Moon’s south pole. (Photo: X/@ISRO)

ChaSTE’s role is to measure thermal properties, including temperature and thermal conductivity, of the lunar surface near the polar region. K. Siddhartha, Earth Scientist at ISRO and a strategic thinker, told ABP Live that ChaSTE will provide “valuable data” about how the lunar surface responds to temperature variations. He explained that ChaSTE will help in understanding the processes that shaped the Moon’s terrain over millions of years.

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Chandrayaan-3 softly landed on the Moon’s south pole on August 23, 2023, at 6:02 pm IST, making India the first country to achieve a soft-landing on the lunar south pole, and the fourth country in the world to softly land a spacecraft on the Moon. 

The Soviet Union’s Luna 9, launched on January 31, 1966, is the first spacecraft to softly land on the Moon. The United States became the second country to softly land a spacecraft on the Moon after NASA’s Surveyor 1 landed on Earth’s natural satellite. Luna 13 is the third spacecraft to softly land on the Moon, and Luna 20 is the fourth spacecraft to achieve this. China’s Chang’e 3 is the fifth spacecraft to softly land on the Moon. With this, China became the third country to achieve a lunar soft-landing.

ISRO chose the Moon’s south pole as the landing site for Chandrayaan-3 because this region is a treasure trove of scientific secrets and cosmic mysteries. Chandrayaan-3's Vikram lander and Pragyan rover will study the water-ice reserves, and analyse the components of the lunar soil to see if water, oxygen, and fuel can be extracted for future crewed missions to the Moon.