It has been announced by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) that Chandrayaan-3, India’s third lunar mission, is in the process of approaching the Moon and is scheduled to perform a significant maneuver on Monday, expected to take place between 11:30 AM and 12:30 PM.
The information was shared by ISRO, stating, “Chandrayaan-3’s orbit has now been brought even closer to the moon’s surface, having been reduced to 174 km x 1437 km following a maneuver carried out on August 9. The subsequent operation is planned for August 14, 2023, during the time frame of 11:30 and 12:30 Hrs. IST,” as communicated on X (formerly referred to as Twitter) on August 9.
Upon the completion of the required maneuvers, a precise landing site near the “Moon’s south pole” will be designated. Following this, the propulsion module will be separated from the lander while in orbit, enabling the lander to descend from orbit and endeavor to make a gentle landing.
In relation to the present status and the schedule for landing on the Moon, it is expected that Chandrayaan-3 will contact the Moon’s surface on August 23 after a journey spanning 40 days. On August 9, Chandrayaan-3 moved even closer to the Moon, as its orbital path was adjusted to 174 km x 1437 km through the maneuver.
Significant events in the Chandrayaan-3 Mission Timeline:
July 6: The launch date of Mission Chandrayaan-3 was officially announced by ISRO as July 14 from Sriharikota’s second launch pad.
July 7: Successful completion of vehicle electrical tests.
July 11: Conducted a 24-hour ‘Launch Rehearsal,’ simulating the entire launch process.
July 14: Chandrayaan-3 was successfully launched into its intended orbit by the LVM3 M4 vehicle.
Various orbit-raising maneuvers were carried out successfully, gradually adjusting the spacecraft’s orbit dimensions.
August 1: Chandrayaan-3 achieved a significant milestone by entering the translunar orbit, with an orbit of 288 km x 369,328 km.
August 5: The spacecraft successfully entered the lunar orbit with an orbit of 164 km x 18,074 km.
August 6: The spacecraft’s orbit was further lowered to 170 km x 4,313 km around the Moon.
August 9: Executed a maneuver, bringing Chandrayaan-3 even closer to the Moon, thereby lowering its orbit to 174 km x 1437 km.
