Chandrayaan-3

Chandrayaan-3
Chandrayaan-3 Integrated Module
Mission type
OperatorISRO
COSPAR ID2023-098A Edit this at Wikidata
SATCAT no.57320
WebsiteOfficial website
Mission duration1 year, 1 month and 8 days (PM)
  • Propulsion module: ≤ 3 to 6 months (planned) 1 year and 17 days (final)
  • Vikram lander: ≤ 14 days (planned)
    1 year, 3 months, 2 days
    (since landing)
  • Pragyan rover: ≤ 14 days (planned)
    12 days (final) (since deployment)
Spacecraft properties
BusI-3K(modified) Propulsion Module;
Vikram (lander)[1]
ManufacturerISRO
Launch mass3900 kg (8600 lb)[2]
Payload massPropulsion Module: 2148 kg (4736 lb)
Lander Module (Vikram): 1726 kg (3806 lb)
Rover (Pragyan) 26 kg (57 lb)
Total: 3900 kg (8600 lb)
PowerPropulsion Module: 758 W
Lander Module: 738 W (WS with Bias)
Rover: 50 W
Start of mission
Launch date14 July 2023 (2023-07-14), 14:35:17 IST (09:05:17 UTC)[3]
RocketLVM3 M4
Launch siteSatish Dhawan Space Centre
ContractorISRO
End of mission
Last contact22 August 2024 (2024-08-23) UTC[4]
Moon orbiter
Orbital insertion5 August 2023
Orbital parameters
Periselene altitude153 km (95 mi)
Aposelene altitude163 km (101 mi)
Moon lander
Spacecraft componentVikram lander
Landing date23 August 2023 (2023-08-23), 18:03 IST (12:33 UTC)[5]
Return launch3 September 2023 (2023-09-03)[5]
Landing siteStatio Shiv Shakti (Shiv Shakti Point)[6] 69°22′23″S 32°19′08″E / 69.373°S 32.319°E / -69.373; 32.319[7]
(between Manzinus C and Simpelius N craters)[8]
Moon rover
Landing date23 August 2023
Distance driven101.4 m (333 ft)[9]
Moon lander
Spacecraft componentVikram lander
Landing date3 September 2023 (2023-09-03)[5]
Landing site40 cm (16 in) away from Statio Shiv Shakti (Shiv Shakti Point)[10]
(between Manzinus C and Simpelius N craters)[8]
Flyby of Moon
Spacecraft componentPropulsion module
Closest approach7 November 2023

Mission insignia

Chandrayaan-3 (IPA: /ˌtʃʌndrəˈjɑːn/, ISO: Caṁdrayāna) is the third mission in the Chandrayaan programme, a series of lunar-exploration missions developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).[11] The mission consists of a Vikram lunar lander and a Pragyan lunar rover was launched from Satish Dhawan Space Centre on 14 July 2023. The spacecraft entered lunar orbit on 5 August, and India became the first country to touch down near the lunar south pole, at 69°S, the southernmost lunar landing [12] on 23 August 2023 at 18:04 IST (12:33 UTC), ISRO became the first agency to land on the south pole of the moon in its first attempt and overall the fourth space agency to successfully land on the Moon, after USSR, NASA and the CNSA .[13][note 1]

Chandrayaan-3 was launched from Satish Dhawan Space Centre on 14 July 2023. The spacecraft entered lunar orbit on 5 August, and became the first lander to touch down near the lunar south pole[12] on 23 August at 18:03 IST (12:33 UTC), making India the fourth country to successfully land on the Moon, and at 69°S, the southernmost lunar landing, until IM-1 landed further southwards in Malapert A crater on 22 February 2024.[13][note 2] The lander was not built to withstand the cold temperatures of the lunar night, and sunset over the landing site ended the surface mission twelve days after landing.[17][18] The propulsion module, still operational, transited back to a high Earth orbit from lunar orbit on 22 November 2023 for continued scientific observations of Earth.[19] It operated until 22 August 2024.[4]

  1. ^ https://www.isro.gov.in/NSPD2024/assets/pdf/CH3%20Landing%20Brochure-Pagewise.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  2. ^ "Chandrayaan-3 vs Russia's Luna-25 | Which one is likely to win the space race". cnbctv18.com. 14 August 2023. Archived from the original on 16 August 2023. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
  3. ^ "Chandrayaan-3". www.isro.gov.in. Archived from the original on 10 July 2023. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
  4. ^ a b "UPDATE: The CH3 PROPULSION MODULE with the SHAPE payload last observed in a high Earth orbit appears to have ceased S-Band radio emissions". X (Formerly Twitter). Retrieved 23 August 2024.
  5. ^ a b c Jones, Andrew (23 August 2023). "Chandrayaan-3: India becomes fourth country to land on the moon". SpaceNews.com. Archived from the original on 23 August 2023. Retrieved 23 August 2023.
  6. ^ "Chandrayaan 3's landing site name 'Shiv Shakti' gets International Astronomical Union recognition". Hindustan Times. 24 March 2024. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
  7. ^ "LVM3-M4 Gallery". Indian Space Research Organisation. Archived from the original on 28 August 2023. Retrieved 28 August 2023.
  8. ^ a b "India launches Chandrayaan-3 mission to the lunar surface". Physicsworld. 14 July 2023. Archived from the original on 17 July 2023. Retrieved 15 July 2023.
  9. ^ @isro (2 September 2023). "Chandrayaan-3 Mission" (Tweet). Retrieved 2 September 2023 – via Twitter.
  10. ^ "India's Chandrayaan-3 lunar lander successfully 'hops' on the moon". Sky News. Archived from the original on 5 September 2023. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  11. ^ Kumar, Hari; Travelli, Alex; Mashal, Mujib; Chang, Kenneth (23 August 2023). "India Moon Landing: In Latest Moon Race, India Lands First in Southern Polar Region". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 26 August 2023. Retrieved 26 August 2023.
  12. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference :5 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ a b Kumar, Sanjay (23 August 2023). "India makes history by landing spacecraft near Moon's south pole in its first attempt, making it the first country to do so". Science.org. Archived from the original on 24 August 2023. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  14. ^ a b "Chandrayaan-3 launch on 14 July, lunar landing on 23 or 24 August". The Hindu. 6 July 2023. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 11 July 2023. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
  15. ^ a b "India lands spacecraft near south pole of moon in historic first". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 23 August 2023. Retrieved 23 August 2023.
  16. ^ a b Karanam, Durga Prasad; Bhatt, Megha; A, Amitabh; G, Ambily; Sathyan, Sachana; Misra, Dibyendu; Srivastava, Neeraj; Bhardwaj, Anil (3 August 2023). "Contextual Characterisation Study of Chandrayaan-3 Primary Landing Site". Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters. doi:10.1093/mnrasl/slad106. ISSN 1745-3925.
  17. ^ "No 2nd innings, 'super over' for Chandrayaan-3, but Vikram & Pragyan had a great outing". The Times of India. 4 October 2023. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
  18. ^ "Chandrayaan-3 goes dark again? Former ISRO chief says 'no hope of reviving' Vikram lander & Pragyan rover". The Indian Express. 7 October 2023. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
  19. ^ "Returns to home Earth: Chandrayaan-3 Propulsion Module moved from Lunar orbit to Earth's orbit". www.isro.gov.in. Retrieved 4 December 2023.


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