Chandrayaan-3 touchdown: What are Vikram Lander and rover expected to do after soft landing on Aug 23

Chandrayaan-3 landing: A little more than 24 hours are left for the Chandrayaan-3 to attempt to land on the Moon - an event which is being closely watched by all across the world.  

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has confirmed that the historic touchdown on the Moon’s southern extremity is scheduled for 6.04 pm on August 23. 

India’s third lunar mission aims to become the first to conclusively discover evidence of water on the Moon as well as explore the lunar South Pole. If the touchdown is successful on Wednesday, India will become the fourth country after the US, the former USSR and China to achieve a soft landing on the lunar surface. 

Touchdown details 

Chandrayaan-3’s Vikram Lander, launched to the moon on July 14, 2023, at 2.35 pm IST from the Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota, is expected to attempt a soft landing on the Moon at 6.04 pm on August 23. 

ISRO has announced that a live telecast is planned for the event, starting at 5.20 pm on that day. 

On Monday, Chandrayaan-3's Lander Module established two-way communication with the already present Chandrayaan-2's orbiter, which was launched in 2019 for the purpose of achieving a ‘soft landing’ on the Moon's south pole. 

At present, the Lander Module of the lunar craft is trying to locate a spot for a perfect landing on the Moon’s surface. Approximately 2 m in height and about 1,700 kg in weight, the Chandrayaan-3 lander resembles an SUV in terms of its dimensions.

How the touchdown will take place 

The Chandrayaan-3 lander is expected to transfer its high-speed horizontal position to a vertical one in an attempt to make a soft landing on the Moon. The technical manoeuvre is expected to help the spacecraft in a gentle descent onto the Moon’s surface. If this is successfully done, the mission can then progress to the next step. 

In 2019, Chandrayaan-2's orbiter could not successfully touch down on the lunar surface and lost communication after reaching an altitude as close as 2.1 km. 

Schedule after touchdown 

After the touchdown, the Chandrayaan-3 is expected to remain functional for two weeks, running a series of experiments including a spectrometer analysis of the mineral composition of the lunar surface. 

ISRO scientists will monitor the rover operations for one lunar day or 14 days on Earth. The scientists will be analysing tonnes of data coming from five scientific instruments on board the lander and rover, as per details shared by ISRO. 

After its landing, one side panel of the Vikram lander will unfold, creating a ramp for the Pragyan rover.  

The six-wheeled Pragyan with a national flag and ISRO logo on it will be placed on the lunar surface after four hours and move at a speed of 1 cm per second. 

The rover, which is equipped with navigation cameras, will scan the lunar surface. The rover has instruments configured with payloads to provide data related to the Moon surface. 

It has a set of eight payloads, including one by NASA. The payloads will gather data on the elemental composition of the Moon’s atmosphere and send data to the lander. 

The rover will communicate with the lander, which in turn will communicate with ISRO scientists.  

One of the main objectives of Chandrayaan-3 is to demonstrate rover roving on the moon and to carry in-situ scientific experiments. 

Apart from the mission objectives, the payloads attached to the Lander and rover will carry out several study and send back data about the lunar surface, the processes of lunar body and its formation. 

Also read: 'Chandrayaan-3's landing may get postponed to Aug 27 if...,' says Isro scientist ahead of planned touchdown on Moon

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