India made history in space exploration with the successful landing of Chandrayaan-3 on the lunar south pole on August 23, 2023. Chandrayaan-3 is the third mission in the Chandrayaan program, a series of lunar exploration missions developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). It includes a lunar lander named Vikram and a lunar rover named Pragyan, similar to those aboard Chandrayaan-2 in 2019. Chandrayaan-3 launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre on July 14, 2023, using the powerful LVM3 rocket. It entered lunar orbit on August 5 and touched down near the lunar south pole at 18:03 IST (12:33 UTC). India became the fourth nation to achieve a successful lunar landing, marking a pioneering accomplishment near the challenging lunar south pole. The idea for a lunar scientific mission formed in 1999 during a pivotal meeting of the Indian Academy of Sciences (IAS) and was nurtured by the Astronautical Society of India (ASI) in 2000. The National Lunar Mission Task Force (NLMTF) was formed, consisting of ISRO and prominent Indian scientists and technologists from across the country. Their comprehensive feasibility study underwent rigorous scrutiny by a peer group of 100 scientists from diverse disciplines. Chandrayaan-1, the program’s first mission, began its journey on October 22, 2008, using the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) rocket. It included a lunar orbiter and an impactor. The orbiter carried 11 scientific instruments from India, USA, UK, Germany, Sweden, and Bulgaria to meticulously map the lunar surface across various spectra – visible, infrared, X-ray, and microwave. The impactor crash-landed into the lunar south pole, generating a plume of dust analyzed for water and other volatiles. Chandrayaan-1 exceeded its one-year mission life, operating until August 2009. Chandrayaan-2, the program’s second mission, began its journey on July 22, 2019, propelled by the LVM3 rocket. It featured a lunar orbiter, a lander, and a rover. The orbiter, equipped with eight scientific instruments from India and NASA, still operates in a polar orbit around the Moon. However, the lander and rover, intended for a lunar south pole landing on September 6, 2019, lost communication with mission control during the descent and crash landed. The lander carried four instruments from India and one from NASA, while the rover carried two instruments from India, with the primary objective of mapping lunar water. Chandrayaan-3, the program’s third mission, launched on July 14, 2023, using the LVM3 M4 rocket. It featured a lander and rover, with the repurposed Chandrayaan-2 orbiter handling communication and navigation. The lander carried four instruments from India and one from NASA, while the rover carried two instruments from India. The mission’s primary scientific objective remained mapping lunar water and testing vital technologies for future human lunar missions. Chandrayaan-3 is a milestone in India’s space journey, a testament to the nation’s scientific and technological prowess.
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