Chandrayaan-3 lander detaches from module, starts final moon trek

New Delhi, August 17

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The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) today announced that the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft’s lander module had successfully separated from the propulsion module that was propelling it all these days in space.

The lander module comprising the lander (Vikram) and the rover (Pragyan) is now said to be ready to be lowered to an orbit that takes it closer to the moon’s surface. The soft-landing on the lunar south pole is scheduled on August 23. After the separation, the lander is slated to undergo a ‘de-boost’ (process of slowing down) to place itself in an orbit where the perilune (orbit’s closest point to moon) is 30 km and apolune (farthest point) is 100 km. From there, soft-landing would be attempted, ISRO officials said.

“The SHAPE (spectro-polarimetry of habitable planet earth) payload aboard propulsion module will perform spectroscopic study of the earth’s atmosphere and measure the variations in polarisation from the clouds on earth — to accumulate signatures of exoplanets that would qualify for our habitability,” ISRO said. The lander has the capability to soft-land at a specified lunar site and deploy the rover that will carry out in-situ chemical analysis of the moon’s surface during the course of its mobility. The lander and the rover have scientific payloads to carry out experiments.

Following its launch from the spaceport at Sriharikota on July 14, Chandrayaan-3 entered into the lunar orbit on August 5. Subsequently, orbit reduction manoeuvres were carried out on the satellite on August 6, 9, 14 and 16, ahead of separation of both its modules today, in the run-up to the moon landing on August 23.

Earlier, over five moves in the three weeks since the July 14 launch, ISRO had flung the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft into orbits farther and farther away from the earth. Then, in a manoeuvre on August 1 in a slingshot move, the spacecraft was sent successfully towards the moon from earth’s orbit. — TNS

Soft-landing on Aug 23

• After the separation, the lander will undergo a ‘de-boost’ (slowing down process) to place itself in the lunar orbit
• From there, the soft-landing on the moon’s surface will be attempted on August 23
• The lander will deploy its rover to carry out chemical analysis of the moon’s surface