• Source:JND
Add as a preferred

Chandrayaan-3 Moon Mission: The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said on Thursday that all activities are on schedule and that all systems are normal. It also added that the Lander Module payloads ILSA, RAMBHA, and ChaSTE are turned on today. The rover mobility operations have also commenced.

The space agency said that the Pragyan Rover began its moonwalk on the lunar surface on Thursday. Earlier in the day, it released the images of the Lander Imager Camera, which captured the moon’s image just before touchdown on the lunar surface. 

This great achievement by India grabbed the eyeballs of the world, with the international media reporting it. The newspapers in Pakistan, despite the chill in bilateral ties, gave front-page coverage to the historic moon landing.

Former Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Fawad Chaudhry, who mocked the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) earlier after the failure of a previous mission, on Wednesday congratulated the ISRO’s soft-landing on the lunar South Pole. Taking to his official handle on X, formerly Twitter, Chaudhry said, “What a great moment for #ISRO as #Chandrayaan3 lands on the Moon, I can see lots of young scientists celebrating this moment with Somnat Chairman ISRO, only Younger generation with dreams can change the world … good luck”.

Chandrayaan 3 Mission: Significance

According to the news agency PTI, the significance of this mission, unlike its predecessor, Chandrayaan-2, which was unsuccessful, is that the Propulsion Module has a payload - SHAPE - Spectro polarimetry of Habitable Planet Earth) to study Earth from lunar orbit.

ALSO READ: Covid New Variants BA.2.86, EG.5.1 Don't Pose Any Danger To Indians, Say Experts

According to ISRO, SHAPE is an experimental payload to study the spectro-polarimetric signatures of the Earth in the near-infrared wavelength range. Besides the SHAPE payload, the main function of the Propulsion Module is to carry the Lander Module from the launch vehicle injection to lander separation. 

The mission overall marks the genesis of India’s renewed lunar aspirations, which will add a new chapter and help us propel into the cosmos. The Chandrayaan-3 mission represents the continuation of an innovative legacy that India has kept for years.

Another significance of the Chandrayaan-3 mission is the importance of self-reliance. While initial missions, like Aryabhatta, relied on international partnerships, Chandrayaan-3 marks an important milestone towards self-sufficiency. The successful launch of the Chandrayaan-3 will further lead to a future where India’s lunar missions are entirely homegrown.

Besides all that, this mission will play a crucial role in India’s quest to establish a human presence on the moon. By creating new partnerships and launching successful missions, India can act as a pivot in the future of lunar exploration. 

With the recent failure of Russia’s Luma-25 mission, India becomes the first country to achieve a soft landing on the South Pole of the Moon. The successful landing will drive the Centre to invest more in private space launches and related satellite-based businesses. It will also push India’s ambitions for its private space launches and related satellite-based businesses.

The Vikram lander carrying the 'Pragyaan' rover in its belly touched down on the lunar surface, marking a giant leap in India’s spacefaring journey and providing a deserved finale to ISRO’s long years of toil.

India became the fourth country after the US, China, and Russia to have successfully placed a lander on the lunar South Pole. It also became the first country to touch down on the south side of Earth’s only natural satellite.