DRAPED IN TRICOLOURS
Indian scientists achieve another milestone
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Credit: X
Utkarsha Gandhe
In an epoch-making event, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)'s Chandrayaan 3, India's third lunar exploration mission, successfully reached the south pole of the moon . India is now the first country to step on the southern side of the moon, marking a new landmark in the history of space science and technology. The Vikram Lander soft-landed on the moon on August 23, 2023 6.04 pm (IST). The diligently planned operations, hard work of the scientists and learnings from its predecessor, Chandrayaan 2 have all together made the mission possible.
According to the Economic Times, " Back in 2020, ISRO Chairman K Sivan stated that the total cost of Chandrayaan-3 was 615 crores. This includes 250 crores for propulsion and an additional 365 crores for launch expenses."
"I reached my destination and you too! Chandrayaan-3 has successfully soft-landed on the moon. Congratulations, India!" , ISRO posted on its official website. Unlike Chandrayaan 2 which had an orbiter, a lander and a rover, the orbiter of the 3rd spacecraft has been replaced by a propulsion module. Interesting terms such as 'chaand par tiranga', 'moon ki baat' , 'an evening walk on the moon' were used by netizens to express their joy. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and ISRO chief S Somanath addressed the country sharing their joy.
Vikram Lander sent an image of the portion of the Chandrayaan-3's landing site taken after landing. According to the Times Of India, "The Pragyan rover has moved out and it is capable of travelling around the landing site to collect various data which will be useful for the scientific community", said the Former ISRO Chairman G Madhavan Nair. “The rover will traverse a distance of approximately half a km in the next 12 days, capturing images, said Dr Pawan Goenka, Chairman of the Indian Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN-SPACe).
