Chandrayaan 3 launch on July 14: Here’s everything you need to know about ISRO’s third moon mission

Sriharikota: The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) is gearing up for the much-awaited launch of Chandrayaan-3, the country’s third moon mission, on July 14. As per the schedule, the third lunar mission will be launched from Satish Dhawan at 2:35 pm IST. Space Centre, Sriharikota. ISRO said in a social media post, “LVM3M4-Chandrayaan-3 Mission: Countdown to launch begins tomorrow (Friday-July 14) at 14.35 hrs.”

LVM3 M4/Chandrayaan-3 Mission:
The countdown to the launch will begin tomorrow at 14:35:17. IST has started.

curtain raiser: https://t.co/xn4nRucAMn– ISRO (@isro) 13 July 2023

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With the planned launch of Chandrayaan-3, ISRO is going to make its second attempt to land a spacecraft on the Moon. Earlier in 2019, Chandrayaan-2’s lander and rover crashed on the lunar surface due to some technical problems encountered during the final stage of landing.

With this mission, ISRO will attempt to cross new frontiers by performing a soft landing on the lunar surface by its lunar module and performing a go-around on the lunar terrain. A successful mission would see India joining an elite club of nations to have achieved such a feat, others including the United States, China and the former Soviet Union.

When is the soft-landing?

The LVM3-M4 rocket, dubbed the ‘Fat Boy’ by ISRO scientists due to its ability to carry heavy payloads, will carry Chandrayaan-3 on India’s ambitious Moon mission and, if things go according to plan, the rocket There will be a soft landing. The spacecraft will be in late August. This mission is expected to be helpful in future interplanetary missions.

The Chandrayaan-3 mission comprising an indigenous propulsion module, a lander module and a rover aims to develop and demonstrate new technologies required for inter-planetary missions. Friday’s mission is the fourth operational flight of LVM3 aimed at launching the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft into Geo Transfer Orbit.

The LVM3 vehicle has proven its versatility in launching multiple satellites and carrying out most complex missions including interplanetary missions. ISRO said it is also the largest and heaviest launch vehicle carrying domestic and international customer satellites.

Chandrayaan-3 Mission:
The ‘Launch Rehearsal’ simulating the entire launch preparation and process lasting 24 hours is over.

Mission Statement: pic.twitter.com/oqV1TYux8V– ISRO (@isro) 11 July 2023

All About Chandrayaan – India’s Lunar Mission

As the scientific community eagerly awaits the successful third edition of India’s moon mission, Chandrayaan-3, here’s a quick look at how the country’s lunar mission evolved over the years.

Chandrayaan-1

The Chandrayaan program was conceived by the Government of India and was formally announced on August 15, 2003 by former Prime Minister Late Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Thereafter, the hard work of the scientists paid off when the first mission was launched on ISRO’s trusted PSLV-C11. The rocket was launched on 22 October 2008.

According to the Indian Space Research Organisation, the PSLV-C11 was an updated version of the standard configuration of the PSLV. The vehicle, which weighed 320 tonnes at lift-off, used larger strap-on motors to achieve a higher payload capacity.

It contained 11 scientific instruments manufactured in India, the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Sweden and Bulgaria.
Renowned scientist Mayilsamy Annadurai from Tamil Nadu led the project as the Mission Director of the Chandrayaan-1 mission.

The spacecraft was orbiting around the Moon at an altitude of 100 km from the lunar surface for chemical, mineralogical and photo-geological mapping of the Moon. While the mission achieved all the desired objectives, the orbit of the spacecraft was raised to 200 km in May 2009, a few months after launch. The satellite made more than 3,400 orbits around the Moon, more than the ISRO team expected, and the mission eventually ended as scientists at the space agency announced that communication with the spacecraft had been lost on August 29, 2009.

Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Thiruvananthapuram designed and developed PSLV-C11.

Chandrayaan-2

Buoyed by the success, Chandrayaan-2 was conceived by ISRO as a more complex mission as it carried an orbiter, lander (Vikram) and rover (Pragyan) to explore the uncharted south pole of the Moon. After liftoff on July 22, 2019, Chandrayaan 2 was successfully placed in lunar orbit on August 20 the same year.

Every move of the spacecraft was precise as the lander ‘Vikram’ successfully separated from the orbiter in preparation for landing on the lunar surface. After orbiting the Moon at an altitude of 100 km, the descent of the lander was as per plan and was normal till an altitude of 2.1 km. However, the mission ended abruptly as scientists lost contact with Vikram, which was named after late Vikram Sarabhai, the father of India’s space programme.

The Chandrayaan-2 mission failed to achieve the desired soft landing on the lunar surface, leaving the ISRO team disappointed. Images of Prime Minister Narendra Modi consoling an emotional then ISRO chief K Sivan, who were present at the ISRO headquarters to witness this rare achievement, are still fresh in the memories of many.

The objective of the Chandrayaan 2 mission was to expand lunar scientific knowledge through detailed studies of topography, seismology, mineral identification and distribution, surface chemical composition and thermo-physical characteristics of the upper soil, leading to a new understanding of the origin and evolution of the Moon. May be born ,

Friday’s Chandrayaan-3 mission follows Chandrayaan-2 which aims to master the soft landing on the lunar surface. A successful landing on the lunar surface would make India the fourth country to achieve this feat after the United States, China and the former Soviet Union.