Chandrayaan 3 updates: Pragyan rover begins walk; PM Modi to visit ISRO HQ Saturday

The propulsion module has a Spectro-polarimetry of Habitable Planet Earth (SHAPE) payload to study the spectral and Polari metric measurements of Earth from the lunar orbit.

Lander payloads: Chandra’s Surface Thermophysical Experiment (ChaSTE) to measure the thermal conductivity and temperature; Instrument for Lunar Seismic Activity (ILSA) for measuring the seismicity around the landing site; Langmuir Probe (LP) to estimate the plasma density and its variations. A passive Laser Retroreflector Array from NASA is accommodated for lunar laser ranging studies.

Rover payloads: Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) and Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscope (LIBS) for deriving the elemental composition in the vicinity of the landing site.

"I am not surprised, because I knew deep inside that ISRO will make it this time. I am already a proud Indian and I have become a prouder Indian now," shared Rakesh Sharma, the first Indian to venture into space, speaking to National Geographic.

“I knew ISRO would iron out all the challenges faced by Chandrayaan-2 and would make this mission a success. Sharing his excitement, he mentioned, “I think I was born a little early because I’m already 75 and the remarkable era of space exploration programs begins now but as an Indian, I join my hands and congratulate ISRO for the great success,” he further added in the television show.

“Glad to speak with my brother, President of the UAE, His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Thank him for his warm wishes on the India’s successful Chandrayaan-3 Mission. Success of this Mission is a success of the entire humanity," PM Modi's official X handle posted.

Here is the detailed timeline of all the developments in the Chandrayaan 3 mission till today

• July 6: ISRO announces Mission Chandrayaan-3 launch date of July 14 from Sriharikota's second pad.

• July 7: Successful vehicle electrical tests completed.

• July 11: Comprehensive 24-hour 'Launch Rehearsal' simulating the entire launch process concludes.

• July 14: LVM3 M4 vehicle launches Chandrayaan-3 into designated orbit.

• July 15: First orbit-raising manoeuvre successful, reaching 41762 km x 173 km orbit.

• July 17: Second orbit-raising manoeuvre places Chandrayaan-3 at 41603 km x 226 km orbit.

• July 22: Fourth orbit-raising manoeuvre establishes spacecraft in 71351 km x 233 km orbit.

• July 25: Another successful orbit-raising manoeuvre.

• August 1: Chandrayaan-3 inserted into translunar orbit (288 km x 369328 km).

• August 5: Successful lunar orbit insertion (164 km x 18074 km).

• August 6: Lunar orbit lowered to 170 km x 4,313 km.

• August 9: ISRO carefully moves the spacecraft's path lower in its orbit around the moon. It has achieved a lunar orbit of 174 km x 1437 km

• August 14: Chandrayaan-3 gets closer to the moon's surface in another controlled bringing it into an orbit of 150 km x 177 km

• August 16: The Indian spacecraft performs the fifth and final Moon-bound manoeuvre positioning itself in a near circular Lunar orbit of 163*153 km.

• August 17: The landing module, comprising the Vikram lander and Pragyan rover, gets separated from its propulsion system.

• August 18: Chandrayaan 3 successfully completed a 'deboosting' operation that reduced its orbit to 113 km x 157 km

• August 20: The Chandrayaan-3 made the final orbit adjustment by reducing it to be around 134*25 km, the farthest and nearest point from the moon respectively.

• August 23: The planned touchdown was successfully achieved.

“PM Narendra Modi is coming on August 26. We will be receiving him in big numbers with more than 6,000 people at HAL airport. There, he might address the people of Bengaluru. Our (BJP) national leader Santosh ji (General Sec B L Santosh) just spoke to me to organise a mega roadshow in Peenya, I have spoken to Dasarahalli MLA Muniraju on this,” senior BJP leader and former Minister R Ashoka said, PTI reported.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be in Bengaluru on August 26, to greet the ISRO scientists and officials for the successful landing of Candrayaan 3's lander and deployment of rover on moon's surface, PTI reported. The Karnataka BJP is planning a grand welcome for the Prime Minister by organising a mega road show in the city on his arrival, senior BJP leader and former Minister R Ashoka said on Thursday.

ISRO achieved successful soft-landing near the moon on Wednesday as Chandrayaan 3's Vikram Lander touched down on the lunar surface.

Chandrayaan 3 mission latest updates

• All activities are on schedule.

• All systems are normal.

• Lander Module payloads ILSA, RAMBHA and ChaSTE are turned ON today.

• Rover mobility operations have commenced.

• SHAPE payload on the Propulsion Module was turned ON on Sunday.

ISRO Chairman S Somanath on Thursday said the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft's lander 'Vikram' touched down on the Moon's surface well within the area identified for the purpose, PTI reported.

Dr. Sanjay Katkar, the Joint Managing Director of Quick Heal Technologies Limited, said, “We are extremely proud of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and what the country has achieved. Quick Heal and SEQRITE have been longstanding cybersecurity partners, diligently protecting numerous IT assets for ISRO across the country. It is indeed an honour for us and we take pride in securing the cybersecurity frontiers of ISRO and various other crucial government entities, enabling them and our nation to focus on historic missions like these. Jai Hind!"

On Wednesday, India became the fourth nation to soft-land a spacecraft on the moon when Chandrayaan-3 touched down near the south pole of the earth's natural satellite, also making it the first country to probe the moon's darker side.

"There have been no attempts to land in the area that India had targeted. India's attempt has been successful. Science has been able to take us to difficult terrain. This itself is a big achievement of science and scientists," PM Modi said on the success of the Chandrayaan 3 landing.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said science has made it possible for India to reach a difficult terrain on the moon and thanked world leaders for their congratulatory messages on the success of Chandrayaan-3.

"Since yesterday I have been receiving congratulatory messages from everyone. Worldover, this achievement is not seen as a success limited to one country, but of the entire humanity. It is a matter of pride for all of us. This is an opportunity to congratulate Indian scientists on behalf of the entire world," he said in brief remarks at the BRICS summit in Johannesburg.

"Today’s doodle celebrates the first-ever landing on the moon’s south pole! The Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota Range, Andhra Pradesh, India on July 14, 2023 and successfully touched down near the lunar south pole region on August 23, 2023," read the note on Thursday's Google Doodle.

Read our detailed copy: Google Doodle on Chandrayaan 3

“Several #FAKE Instagram accounts are claiming to be the official account of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). The official account of @isro is ‘isro.dos.’ For authentic info, visit ISRO's official website: isro.gov.in,” the PIB's fact-checking unit noted in a post on X (formerly Twitter).

Read our detailed story on fake ISRO accounts

On the successful Chandrayaan-3 landing, former ISRO chairman K Sivan says, "I compared the Chandrayaan-2 landing day and yesterday. So, definitely, my dream of going to the Moon and landing near South Pole came true yesterday. So, I am extremely happy that yesterday this soft landing occurred successfully," reports ANI.

Read: Ex- ISRO chief K Sivan on Chandrayaan 3 success

“This is to let you know how thrilled I was by ISRO's magnificent achievement last evening. It is a matter of great pride and excitement to all Indians, particularly the younger generation,” Sonia Gandhi wrote in her letter.

She added, “ISRO's outstanding capabilities have been built up over decades. It has had remarkable leaders and a spirit of collective endeavour has always driven it. It is being anchored on self-reliance since the early sixties that has contributed to its great successes.”

“…I wish the entire ISRO fraternity all the very best and extend my warm greetings to each and every member of it on this momentous occasion,” the Congress leader wrote.

Read: Sonia Gandhi's letter to ISRO Chief Somanath on Chandrayaan 3

PM Modi on Chandrayaan 3: In a briefing in the presence of other leaders from BRICS countries, PM Modi thanked South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa for his congratulatory message on Chandrayaan's successful landing and said that it was a matter of pride. “Friends, now my friend Ramaphosa has given a lot of praise for India's moon mission and I have been feeling this since yesterday, I am getting congratulations from everyone.”

PM Modi said, "It is a matter of pride for us that this success is being accepted not as a limited success of one country but as a significant success of mankind."

"Yesterday Chandrayaan 3 achieved the soft landing on the south pole of the moon and this is not only for India but for scientists across the world. This is the first attempt made by any country on the South Pole and that is a successful attempt," he said.

India began exploring the Moon's surface with a rover on Thursday, a day after it became the first nation to land a craft near the largely unexplored lunar south pole.

“You know I'm going to have to ask you because some people are thinking about this. India, a country that lacks a lot of infrastructure, a country that has a lot of poverty…I think more than 700 million Indians don't have access to a toilet. Really, Really, should they really be spending this sort of money on a space programme,” the BBC anchor can be seen asking in the old video that resurfaced on social media sites after Chandrayaan 3 successful launch.

Replying to this on X, formerly known as Twitter, Mahindra lashed out saying, “Really?? The truth is that, in large part, our poverty was a result of decades of colonial rule which systematically plundered the wealth of an entire subcontinent. Yet the most valuable possession we were robbed of was not the Kohinoor Diamond but our pride & belief in our own capabilities.”

Read our detailed report: Anand Mahindra on Chandrayaan 3 landing

Chandrayaan 3 LIVE news: India successfully soft-landed the Chandrayaan-3 lander Vikram on the surface of the Moon on August 23. Since then, social media has been flooded with posts related to Chandrayaan-3. Now, a video that is gaining popularity online features a Pakistani individual’s humorous take on India’s mission to the Moon. It has since received appreciation from many.

Chandrayaan 3 landing LIVE: Chandrayaan-3 is a follow-on mission to Chandrayaan-2 and its objectives are to demonstrate safe and soft-landing on the lunar surface, roving on the Moon, and to conduct in-situ scientific experiments.

Chandrayaan 3 landing LIVE: Compared to the Earth, Moon’s reduced gravity, very little atmosphere and lots of dust pose difficulties in landing. 

– The lunar south pole is an area of interest for humans due to the presence of water molecules. However, the surface also has hazards like rocks and craters, which can make it difficult to identify safe landing sites within shadowed and dark surface regions.

– The ISRO explained that deep-space communication is also another challenge as the large distance from the Earth and the limited on-board and radio signals are weak with heavy background noises that need to be picked up by large antennas.

– Not only, the Moon’s reduced gravity a challenge, it is also ‘lumpy’ due to uneven mass distribution under its surface, making the attempt to orbit around the Moon a tough task, ISRO said.

Chandrayaan 3 landing LIVE: The ISRO’s ₹978 crore unmanned Chandrayaan 2 mission failed its objective after the lander ceased communication to the ground stations at an altitude of 2.1 km from the surface of the Moon. 

– Soft landings, described by former ISRO chairman K Sivan, are “15 minutes of terror” which present a challenge due to the precise timing required for the rocket engine to fire. 

– The firing attempts to “lower the lander carrying the rover down on the Moon, which has no atmosphere".