As India’s Chandrayaan spacecraft advances towards its much-anticipated lunar touchdown, national and international excitements have reached new heights. The ISRO’s ambitious mission- Chandrayaan-3, is all set to soft-land on the Moon by August 23, as the spacecraft has reached closer to it. Earlier, it successfully separated from the propulsion module on August 17, 35 days after it was launched.
In Uttar Pradesh, special ‘Havan’ is being performed at several places. A special ‘Havan’ was performed for the successful landing of Chandrayaan-3 by the Shri Math Baghambari Gaddi in Prayagraj. Chandrayaan-3 is the ISRO’s follow-up attempt after the Chandrayaan-2 mission faced challenges during its soft landing. A ‘Havan’ was performed at Kamakhya Temple in Varanasi on August 22 for the successful landing of Chandrayaan-3 on the Moon.
Former ISRO Chief K Sivan has exuded confidence in the Chandrayaan-3 mission. The Lander Module is inching closer to the Moon’s surface and the world is waiting for its soft landing scheduled on August 23. K Sivan said that the mission would be a “grand success” this time. Sivan also said that corrective measures have been taken in Chandrayaan-3 based on the learnings from Chandrayaan-2. In 2019, India’s second lunar mission could not make a soft landing on the Moon’s surface. Chandrayaan-3 is a follow-up mission of Chandrayaan-2 and it has reached its final stage.
Indian Institute of Astrophysics Director Annapurni Subramaniam lauded India’s lunar mission after Russia’s Luna-25’s crash landing. She said, “We are about to land on 23 August. It is a very momentous occasion for India and also very big milestone in terms of space exploration. We look forward to the final operations of landing on 23rd evening.”
On Russia Luna-25 crash, she said, “We all know that the Russian Space Agency had a very big credential regarding space exploration 50 years ago and they attempted this after about 50 years. We hope that they still continue to have the knowledge, capacity and experience and that they will be able to solve it and go ahead with their Luna-26 and Luna-27 missions as planned.”
Actors are also expressing their excitements about the mission. For example, Kareena Kapoor Khan, during an event in the national capital, the ‘Jab We Met’ star shared that she is planning to watch Chandrayaan 3’s landing on the moon with her little sons Taimur and Jeh. “It’s a great and proud moment for India and all the Indians. You feel that pride in your heart. As Indians, all of us right now, are waiting to watch it. A lot of people are going to be glued to watching it. I am going to be doing that with my boys as well, with bated breath,” Kareena said.
Chandrayaan-3 is set to land on the moon on August 23, 2023, around 18:04 hours IST. Live actions will be available on the ISRO website, its YouTube channel, Facebook, and public broadcaster DD National TV from 17:27 IST on Aug 23, 2023.
ISRO has also released images of the lunar far side area captured by the Lander Hazard Detection and Avoidance Camera (LHDAC). This camera assists in locating a safe landing area- without boulders or deep trenches — during the descent.
The ‘Vikram’ lander module of the spacecraft successfully separated from the propulsion module recently and subsequently underwent crucial deboosting manoeuvres and descended to a slightly lower orbit. The Chandrayaan-3 mission’s lander is named after Vikram Sarabhai (1919–1971), who is widely regarded as the father of the Indian space programme.
A GSLV Mark 3 (LVM 3) heavy-lift launch vehicle was used for the launch of the spacecraft that was placed in the lunar orbit on August 5 and since then, it has been through a series of orbital manoeuvres. The Indian Space Research Organisation launched the Chandrayaan-3 mission on July 14. The spacecraft was launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Andhra Pradesh’s Sriharikota.
Ahead of the much-awaited landing of India on the Moon’s south pole, SAC Director revealed ‘Plan-B’ for Chandrayaan-3. The landing of the module will take place on Aug 27 if the factors do not appear favourable on Aug 23, informed SAC Director Desai. In the most recent development, Chandrayaan-2’s orbiter established a two-way connection with Chandrayaan-3’s lander module. (Inputs from ANI)