The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is gearing up for the highly anticipated Chandrayaan-3 mission, scheduled to take off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh, on July 14.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Building upon the previous mission, Chandrayaan-2, the upcoming Chandrayaan-3 aims to demonstrate key capabilities, including reaching the moon’s orbit, making a soft landing on the lunar surface, and deploying a rover to study the moon’s terrain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After the scheduled lift-off at 2.35 pm IST, approximately 16 minutes later, the propulsion module will separate from the rocket and begin its elliptical orbit around the Earth. This orbit will involve five to six cycles, with the closest distance to Earth at 170 km and the farthest at 36,500 km, gradually moving towards the lunar orbit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
ISRO scientists have tentatively set the goal of reaching the moon’s surface with a soft landing by August 23-24, positioning India among the elite nations to achieve this remarkable feat. The development of Chandrayaan-3 commenced in January 2020, with original plans for a launch in 2021. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the project faced delays in its development process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Chandrayaan program was announced by the late Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 2003. Chandrayaan-1, launched in 2008 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, provided significant insights into the moon’s water molecules despite its crash near the lunar South Pole. In 2019, Chandrayaan-2 continued the exploration, with the Vikram Lander separating while orbiting the moon. Although communication with the lander was lost, the mission provided valuable data from its lunar polar orbit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n