India's space agency has unveiled the initial pictures of the Moon taken by Chandrayaan-3 as it entered lunar orbit on Saturday. The images showcase lunar craters growing larger as the spacecraft approaches, BBC reports.
Chandrayaan-3's lander and rover are set to reach the Moon's surface on August 23. If successful, India will be the first nation to achieve a controlled "soft landing" near the Moon's south pole, joining the ranks of the U.S., the former Soviet Union, and China.
Chandrayaan-3, the third mission in India's lunar exploration program, is expected to build on its predecessors' accomplishments. This comes 13 years after India's initial Moon mission in 2008, which discovered water molecules on the Moon's dry surface and confirmed its daytime atmosphere.
Chandrayaan-2, launched in July 2019, had an orbiter, lander, and rover but was only partially successful. While its orbiter continues to study the Moon, the lander rover crashed during touchdown. However, Isro's chief stated that lessons from Chandrayaan-2 were used to improve Chandrayaan-3, which weighs 3,900kg and costs 6.1bn rupees.
The lander, named Vikram, weighs approximately 1,500kg and carries the 26kg rover called Pragyaan, meaning wisdom in Sanskrit. As the craft enters lunar orbit, scientists will gradually reduce its speed to ensure a soft landing for Vikram.
To achieve this, Isro has planned a series of maneuvers to position the spacecraft over the Moon's poles, followed by complex braking maneuvers for a soft landing in the Moon's south pole region.
Once landed, the six-wheeled rover will explore the Moon's surface, collecting crucial data and images to be sent back to Earth for analysis. The rover is equipped with five instruments to study the Moon's surface characteristics, atmosphere, and tectonic activity below the surface.
The Moon's south pole remains largely unexplored, with areas permanently shadowed, suggesting the possibility of water presence.
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