On August 1, the spacecraft finished its loops around the Earth and started traveling across the lunar surface to reach the Moon, a distance of more than 4 lakh kilometers.
In brief,
- It launched on July 14 from the Satish Dhawan Space Center.
- ISRO’s Telemetry, Tracking, and Command Network carried out the LOI maneuver.
- The mission’s objective is to show that India is capable of making a soft and safe landing on the moon.
While India prepares for a lunar landing in the coming days, Chandrayaan-3, its third lunar mission, has successfully entered the Moon’s orbit.
The Lunar Orbit Injection (LOI), which put the spacecraft into a stable lunar orbit, was carried out around 7 p.m. IST, according to the Indian Space Research Organization (Isro).
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Chandrayaan-3 was launched on the LVM-3 rocket from the Satish Dhawan Space Center on July 14, 2023, and has traveled more than three lakh kilometers between the Earth and the Moon. On August 1, the spacecraft started its trans-lunar trip toward the Moon after completing its orbits around the Earth.
Isro’s Telemetry, Tracking, and Command Network (ISTRAC) in Bengaluru carried out the LOI maneuver.
The spacecraft’s velocity was decreased during this key maneuver, which allowed the Moon’s gravitational field to pull it into a stable lunar orbit. In the days that will follow, a series of maneuvers are planned to progressively lower the spacecraft’s altitude as it moves in an elliptical orbit around the Moon.
India has moved one step closer to joining the US, China, and Russia as the fourth nation to successfully land a spacecraft on the lunar surface with Chandrayaan-3’s successful entry into the Moon’s orbit.
Following the difficulties encountered with the Chandrayaan-2 mission in 2019, the project intends to show that India is capable of making a safe and soft landing on the lunar surface.
The propulsion module will separate from the lander in the following phase of the mission, which will continue its ascent to the lunar south pole. On August 23, a soft landing will take place on the lunar surface.
A lander, a rover, and a propulsion module totaling about 3,900 kilograms are included on Chandrayaan-3.
The onboard scientific equipment will examine the Moon’s surface and take measurements of the near-surface plasma density, the thermal characteristics of the lunar surface close to the poles, the seismic activity around the landing location, and the elemental makeup of the Moon’s soil.
The successful insertion of Chandrayaan-3 into lunar orbit represents a major accomplishment for Isro and the entire country. The entire world is anxiously awaiting the results of this challenging mission as the spacecraft starts its orbit around the Moon.