Chandrayaan-3 to attempt landing at Moon's south pole at 6:04pm
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is preparing for the crucial landing of the Chandrayaan-3 mission today. The mission's Vikram lander—which is carrying the Pragyan rover—is planned to land on the lunar surface at 6:04pm IST. This time around, the Vikram lander is better equipped to handle landing challenges, thanks to improvements made over the predecessor mission, Chandrayaan-2. The lander can now withstand greater velocities during descent and has undergone other significant modifications.
The rover will be deployed post landing
If successful, India will become the first country to have landed near the Moon's south pole. It will also be the fourth country to achieve soft landing on the lunar surface. Post-landing, the Pragyan rover will be released from Vikram and descend onto the lunar surface using a ramp to start its exploratory activities. The lander and rover are carrying scientific instruments for investigating the Moon. They are designed to function for one lunar day, equivalent to 14 Earth days.
Here's how Chandrayaan-3 will land on Moon
Chandrayaan-3's Vikram lander will begin its powered lunar descent from an altitude of 25km. As it descends, the lander will be moving at a velocity of 1.68km/second or almost 6,048km/hour—10 times the speed of an airplane. The lander will then be made to slow down, and it will lie almost horizontally to the lunar surface. This stage is dubbed the rough braking phase, which will proceed for about 11 minutes.
The lander will be positioned vertically for touchdown
ISRO will perform maneuvers to bring the Vikram lander to a vertical orientation with respect to the Moon's surface. This stage will mark the 'fine braking phase.' Shifting the lander from a horizontal to a vertical direction is crucial, which ISRO couldn't achieve with Chandrayaan-2. This flip maneuver will position the Vikram lander to make a soft landing on the Moon. If the conditions are unfavorable, the landing will be attempted on August 27 as per ISRO's contingency plan.
'Even if Vikram's engines fail, it can still land'
At an event held earlier this month, ISRO Chairman S Somnath explained the possibility of Vikram making a soft lunar landing. He said even if "everything fails," including the sensors and engines, Vikram will still be able to land on the Moon. "That's how it [Vikram] has been designed—provided that the propulsion system works well. We have also made sure that if two of the engines don't work this time also, it will still be able to land," Somnath said.
Here's how you can watch the lunar landing
Chandrayaan-3's historic lunar landing will be live-streamed via ISRO's YouTube account, ISRO's Facebook page, and the DD National TV channel. The live streaming for the event begins at 5:20pm IST on the YouTube channel. National Geographic as well as Disney+ Hotsar will also broadcast the event.
