SRIHARIKOTA: As the clock ticks for ISRO’s high-profile launch of the year, the Chandrayaan-3 lunar mission, all eyes are on the country’s space agency whose scientists are keen to taste success with a soft landing on lunar surface and put the country in an elite club of nations that have accomplished the challenging task.
‘Fat boy’ LVM3-M4 rocket will carry Chandrayaan-3 on Friday as part of the country’s ambitious moon mission. The Indian Space Research Organisation will be launching the hugely anticipated mission from this spaceport at 2.35 pm on Friday. The soft landing on moon’s surface is planned for late August.
Chandrayaan-2 failed to achieve the desired soft landing on the moon surface in 2019, leaving the ISRO team dejected. Images of an emotional then ISRO chief K Sivan being consoled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi who was present to achieve the rare feat, remains vivid in the memory of many.
Scientists at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre here, after investing many hours of hard work, now aim at mastering the technology of soft-landing on the surface of the moon. A success would make India only the fourth country to achieve the feat after the United States, China and the former Soviet Union.
Chandrayaan-3 is the third lunar exploration mission ready for takeoff in the fourth operational mission (M4) of LVM3 launcher. ISRO is crossing new frontiers by demonstrating soft-landing on the lunar surface by its lunar module and demonstrating roving on the lunar terrain, the space agency said.
The 25.30 hour countdown for the launch is under way.
The mission is expected to be supportive to future interplanetary missions.
Chandrayaan-3 mission consists of an indigenous propulsion module, lander module and a rover with an objective of developing and demonstrating new technologies required for inter-planetary missions.