On July 14, 2023, the spacecraft Chandrayaan-3 will launch from the Satish
Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, India.
India drew one step closer to a controlled landing on the moon this weekend
as its Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft entered lunar orbit, inching toward the
surface's unexplored South Pole.
In a Sunday post on X, previously known as Twitter, the Indian Space
Research Organization stated the spacecraft also "successfully underwent a
planned orbit reduction maneuver." "The engines' retrofiring brought it
closer to the Moon's surface."
The mission is scheduled to arrive on the moon on August 23. If successful,
India would be only the fourth country to accomplish the difficult feat,
following the United States, the erstwhile Soviet Union, and China.
Chandrayaan-3, developed by the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO),
consists of a lander, propulsion module, and rover. Its mission is to land
safely near the moon's South Pole, collect data, and perform a series of
scientific experiments to learn more about the moon's composition.
On July 14, it lifted off from the Satish Dhawan Space Center in
Sriharikota, southern Andhra Pradesh state, raising India's space goals and
solidifying the country's image as a burgeoning innovation and technological
centre.
It is India's second attempt at a soft landing, following the failure of
the Chandrayaan-2 in 2019. Its first lunar mission, Chandrayaan-1, orbited
the moon before deliberately crashing down on its surface in 2008.
For years, Indian experts have been working on the project.
Chandrayaan-1, India's first lunar mission, detected water molecules on the
moon's surface. The Chandrayaan-2 successfully entered lunar orbit eleven
years later, but its rover crashed-landed on the moon's surface. It, too,
was tasked with exploring the moon's South Pole.
India's space program extends back more than six decades, to a time when
the country was a freshly formed republic and a terribly impoverished
country recovering from a brutal division.
When the country launched its first rocket into space in 1963, it was no
match for the aspirations of the United States and the former Soviet Union,
who were well ahead in the space race.
India is now the world's most populous country and its fifth largest
economy, but its space goals have lagged behind under Modi.
"Chandrayaan-3 writes a new chapter in India's space odyssey," Modi tweeted
immediately after the mission launched last month.
"It soars high, elevating every Indian's dreams and ambitions." This
historic feat is a credit to our scientists' unwavering devotion. I applaud
their courage and resourcefulness!"
Since then, India has spent over $75 million on its Chandrayaan-3
mission.
