Chandrayaan-3 is the third Indian lunar exploration mission under the Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) Chandrayaan programme. It consists of a lander named Vikram and a rover named Pragyan, similar to those of the Chandrayaan-2 mission. The propulsion module carried the lander and rover configuration to lunar orbit in preparation for a powered descent by the lander.
Chandrayaan-3 was launched on 14 July 2023. The lander and rover landed at the lunar south pole region on 23 August 2023 at 18:02 IST, making India the first country to successfully land a spacecraft near the lunar south pole and the fourth country to soft-land on the Moon. At an estimated cost of roughly ₹650 ($75 million) crore, the Chandrayaan-3 mission comes into perspective when considering the ₹700 crore budget of the film Adipurush and the ₹1970 crore budget of the 2009 Hollywood movie Avatar.
On 22 July 2019, ISRO launched Chandrayaan-2 on board a Launch Vehicle Mark-3 (LVM3) launch vehicle consisting of an orbiter, a lander and a rover. The lander was scheduled to touch down on the lunar surface in September 2019 to deploy the Pragyan rover. The lander ultimately crashed when it deviated from its intended trajectory while attempting to land. Following Chandrayaan-2, Chandrayaan-3 and further lunar missions were proposed.
ISRO Chandrayaan 3 Team
- ISRO Chairperson: S. Somanath
- Mission Director: S. Mohanakumar
- Associate Mission Director: G. Narayanan
- Project Director: P. Veeramuthuvel
- Deputy Project Director: Kalpana. K
- Vehicle Director: Biju C. Thomas
Mission life
- Propulsion Module: Carries lander and rover to 100 by 100 kilometres (62 mi × 62 mi) orbit, with operation of experimental payload for up to 6 months.
- Lander Module: 1 Lunar Day (14 Earth Days)
- Rover Module: 1 Lunar Day (14 Earth Days)
ISRO Chandrayaan 3 Objectives
ISRO’s mission objectives for the Chandrayaan-3 mission were:
- Getting a lander to land safely and softly on the surface of the Moon.
- Observing and demonstrating the rover’s driving capabilities on the Moon.
- Conducting and observing experiments on the materials available on the lunar surface to better understand the composition of the Moon.
ISRO Chandrayaan 3 Components
Chandrayaan-3 comprised three main components:
Propulsion module: The propulsion module carries the lander and rover configuration to a 100 kilometres (62 mi) lunar orbit. It is a box-like structure with a large solar panel mounted on one side and a cylindrical mounting structure for the lander (the Intermodular Adapter Cone) on top.
Lander: The Vikram lander is responsible for the soft landing on the Moon. It is also box-shaped, with four landing legs and four landing thrusters capable of producing 800 newtons of thrust each. It carries the rover and various scientific instruments to perform on-site analysis.
Rover: The Pragyan rover is a six-wheeled vehicle with a mass of 26 kilograms (57 pounds). It is 917 millimetres (3.009 ft) x 750 millimetres (2.46 ft) x 397 millimetres (1.302 ft) in size. The rover is expected to take multiple measurements to support research into the composition of the lunar surface, the presence of water ice in the lunar soil, the history of lunar impacts, and the evolution of the Moon’s atmosphere.
Payloads
Lander
- Chandra’s Surface Thermophysical Experiment (ChaSTE) will measure the thermal conductivity and temperature of the lunar surface.
- Instrument for Lunar Seismic Activity (ILSA) will measure the seismicity around the landing site.
- Langmuir Probe (LP) will estimate the near-surface plasma density over time.
Rover
- Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectrometer (APXS) will derive the chemical composition and infer the mineralogical composition of the lunar surface.
- Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscope (LIBS) will determine the elemental composition (Mg, Al, Si, K, Ca, Ti, Fe) of lunar soil and rocks around the lunar landing site.
Propulsion module
- Spectro-polarimetry of Habitable Planet Earth (SHAPE) will study spectral and polarimetric measurements of Earth from the lunar orbit in the near-infrared (NIR) wavelength range (1–1.7 μm [3.9×10−5–6.7×10−5 in]).
ISRO Chandrayaan 3 Important Questions
1. What is Chandrayaan-3?
a) The first Indian lunar exploration mission.
b) The second Indian lunar exploration mission.
c) The third Indian lunar exploration mission.
d) A Mars exploration mission.
Answer: c) The third Indian lunar exploration mission.
2. What are the components of Chandrayaan-3’s mission?
a) An orbiter and a lander.
b) A lander and a rover.
c) An orbiter, a lander, and a rover.
d) A lander, a rover, and an orbiter module.
Answer: b) A lander and a rover.
3. When was Chandrayaan-3 launched?
a) 14 July 2023.
b) 23 August 2023.
c) 22 July 2019.
d) 18:02 IST.
Answer: a) 14 July 2023.
4. Where did the lander and rover of Chandrayaan-3 land?
a) Lunar north pole region.
b) Lunar equator.
c) Lunar south pole region.
d) Dark side of the Moon.
Answer: c) Lunar south pole region.
5. What achievement did India accomplish with Chandrayaan-3’s landing?
a) First successful landing on the lunar equator.
b) First soft landing on the Moon’s dark side.
c) First country to land near the lunar south pole.
d) First robotic mission to Mars.
Answer: c) First country to land near the lunar south pole.
6. What happened to the lander of Chandrayaan-2 during its intended landing?
a) It successfully deployed the Pragyan rover.
b) It crashed during landing due to a deviation from its trajectory.
c) It successfully landed on the Moon’s dark side.
d) It became non-functional in lunar orbit.
Answer: b) It crashed during landing due to a deviation from its trajectory.
7. What is the mission life of Lander Module?
a) 1 Lunar Day
b) 2 Lunar Day
c) 3 Lunar Day
d) 4 Lunar Day
Answer: a) 1 Lunar Day
8. What were ISRO’s main objectives for the Chandrayaan-3 mission?
a) Launching a rover into lunar orbit.
b) Sending an orbiter to study the Moon’s atmosphere.
c) Demonstrating a safe and soft landing of a lander on the Moon.
d) Testing the rover’s communication capabilities.
Answer: c) Demonstrating a safe and soft landing of a lander on the Moon.
9. What specific activity did ISRO intend to observe and demonstrate with the rover on the Moon?
a) Rover’s ability to navigate craters.
b) Rover’s capability to collect lunar samples.
c) Rover’s driving capabilities.
d) Rover’s communication with Earth.
Answer: c) Rover’s driving capabilities.
10. Why did ISRO plan to conduct experiments on the materials available on the lunar surface?
a) To test the rover’s scientific instruments.
b) To demonstrate the lander’s mobility.
c) To understand the effects of Moon’s gravity.
d) To gain insights into the composition of the Moon.
Answer: d) To gain insights into the composition of the Moon.