Highlights: Chandrayaan-3 'feeling lunar gravity', next push closer to the moon today

India’s third unmanned Moon mission Chandrayaan-3 on Saturday successfully entered the lunar orbit, 22 days after it was launched for a far more complicated 41-day voyage to reach the lunar south pole where no other nation has gone before.

"I am feeling lunar gravity," was Chandrayaan-3's message to the ISRO after the required maneuver that brought it closer to the moon was carried out without any glitch from the space facility in Bengaluru. The injection into the lunar orbit marked a major milestone in the space agency's ambitious ₹600 crore mission.

The spacecraft has covered about two-thirds of the distance to the Moon since its launch on July 14 and the next 18 days will be crucial for the Indian Space Research Organisation(ISRO).

Astronomer, Professor, Dr RC Kapoor on the Chandrayaan-3 mission on Saturday told news agency ANI, “On 14th July ISRO launched in space Chandrayaan-3 & since then we have been waiting with bated breath...On 1st August ISRO transferred Chandrayaan-3 into the lunar trajectory and today it will be inserted into the Lunar orbit. It means that its speed in its orbit will have to be reduced.”

He added, “A slight reduction in its speed means that it tends to fall towards the moon and in that process, it acquires an orbit towards the moon...Once lunar orbit insertion is successful we will wait for 17th August by which the orbit will have been circularised.”

Dr Kapoor added that they are expecting a touchdown on August 23. “We hope this time it is going to be successful,” he said.

India's ambitious third moon mission, Chandrayaan-3 was successfully inserted into the lunar orbit on Saturday, the ISRO said.

The required maneuver was done from an ISRO facility here, the city-headquartered space agency said in a tweet.

"Chandrayaan-3 has been successfully inserted into the lunar orbit. A retro-burning at the Perilune was commanded from the Mission Operations Complex (MOX), ISTRAC ( ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network ) , Bengaluru," the agency said in a tweet.

Perilune is the spacecraft's closest point to the moon.

Over five moves in the three weeks since the launch on July 14, ISRO has been lifting the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft into orbits farther and farther away from the Earth to reach Moon.

Then, on August 1 in a key maneuver -- a slingshot move -- the craft was sent successfully towards the Moon from Earth's orbit. On Saturday, after the satellite sent a message after reaching Lunar orbit saying, “MOX, ISTRAC, this is Chandrayaan-3. I am feeling lunar gravity.”

The next Lunar bound orbit manoeuvre is scheduled tomorrow, around 23:00 hrs IST. Throughout the first weeks of August, the craft is set to complete 5-6 orbits around the moon, gradually transitioning to a circular 100-kilometre orbit. Over the following ten days, a precise landing site within the moon's south pole area will be determined. Subsequently, the lander will deorbit and initiate a soft landing attempt on August 23 at 5:47pm.

ISRO remains attentive to the lunar landing schedule, considering factors such as the moon's sunrise. If required, the landing may be rescheduled for September. With each accomplished milestone, India's Chandrayaan-3 mission continues its journey towards an unprecedented lunar landing achievement.

Lunar Orbit Insertion (LOI) manoeuvre was completed successfully today (August 05, 2023). With this, Chandrayaan 3 has been successfully inserted into a Lunar orbit, ISRO informed.

The next Lunar bound orbit manoeuvre is scheduled tomorrow (August 06, 2023), around 23:00 hrs IST, the Indian space agency added.

The health of the spacecraft is being continuously monitored from the Mission Operations Complex (MOX) at ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC) in Bengaluru. All the systems of Chandrayaan-3 are healthy, ISRO said.

Chandrayaan-3 Mission:

“MOX, ISTRAC, this is Chandrayaan-3. I am feeling lunar gravity"

Chandrayaan-3 has been successfully inserted into the lunar orbit.

A retro-burning at the Perilune was commanded from the Mission Operations Complex (MOX), ISTRAC, Bengaluru.

The next operation - reduction of orbit – is scheduled for Aug 6, 2023, around 23:00 Hrs. IST, posted ISRO on X (formerly Twitter).

Lunar Orbit Injection (LOI) is a critical manoeuvre in space missions aimed at sending a spacecraft from its trajectory around the Earth to a trajectory that will allow it to enter the orbit of the Moon. It involves firing the spacecraft's engines at a specific point in its journey to increase its velocity and change its path, enabling it to be captured by the Moon's gravitational pull and enter into its orbit. LOI is a precise and carefully calculated manoeuvre that marks a significant step in lunar missions, as it positions the spacecraft for subsequent operation of landing.

"Nothing to worry", Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh said earlier on Saturday as India's third lunar mission, Chandrayaan-3, is set to make a crucial manoeuvre in its journey towards moon this evening.

(Input from ANI wire)

Lunar Orbit Injection (LOI) is scheduled for August 5 at approximately 7:00 pm. Stay tuned to get the latest updates on the Chandrayaan-3 moon mission.

ISRO's third lunar mission is set to build upon the accomplishments of Chandrayaan-1 and accomplish what its predecessor could not—a successful soft landing on the moon's south polar region to investigate water ice.

Chandrayaan-3 LIVE Updates: The Chandrayaan-2 mission faced a setback on September 7, 2019, when the Vikram lander deviated from its intended path during the landing attempt, resulting in a loss of communication with the lander carrying the Pragyan rover.

Despite this unforeseen outcome, the orbiter component of Chandrayaan-2 remains operational, orbiting the moon and gathering valuable scientific information. This mission marks a significant milestone in India's space exploration endeavours.

The significance of the first mission, Chandrayaan-1 in 2008, resonated worldwide as it definitively confirmed the presence of water on the moon's surface.

Chandrayaan-3 vs. Chandrayaan-2

1. Orbiter exclusion: While Chandrayaan-2 consisted of an orbiter, lander (Vikram), and rover (Pragyan), Chandrayaan-3 will not carry an orbiter. This is because the orbiter from the previous mission is still functioning and data will be available from it.

2. Enhanced launch capability: Chandrayaan-3 is launched using the LVM3, previously GSLV Mk III launcher, which provides a robust and powerful launch capability. The spacecraft has increased fuel capacity, enabling it to perform additional manoeuvres and travel further if required. The landing legs have also been reinforced to ensure a safer and more stable landing on the lunar surface.

3. Improved instrumentation: Chandrayaan-3 features upgraded sensors. Additionally, the spacecraft is equipped with larger solar panels, which generate more energy to power its systems. A new instrument called the 'Laser Doppler VelociMeter' has been developed to accurately measure the spacecraft's speed.

4. Enhanced algorithm and software: Lessons learned from Chandrayaan-2's mission have led to improvements in the algorithm and software of Chandrayaan-3. Chandrayaan-2 encountered a software glitch that contributed to its failure, and to avoid such issues, the algorithm and software have been refined for the new mission. Furthermore, the landing target area has been expanded from 500 by 500 meters to 4 by 2.4km, providing more flexibility in case of any unforeseen challenges during the landing process.

5. Propulsion module and payload: The propulsion module of Chandrayaan-3 is responsible for transporting the lander and rover to a lunar orbit of 100km. Additionally, the mission includes the Spectro-polarimetry of Habitable Planet Earth (SHAPE) payload on the module, which focuses on studying smaller planets.

Chandrayaan-3 aims to accomplish almost the same objectives as its predecessor, Chandrayaan-2:

1) Successfully demonstrate a safe and soft landing on the lunar surface.

2) Showcase the mobility of the Rover on the Moon's terrain.

3) Conduct in-situ scientific experiments on the lunar surface.

Chandrayaan 3 status tracking: In a successful perigee burn conducted by ISRO on Tuesday midnight, the spacecraft's orbit was elevated to bring it within the moon's gravitational influence. It cruised in an orbit 288 kilometres nearest to Earth and 3,69,328 kilometres at its farthest point. It is scheduled to enter lunar orbit today at 7pm.

India aims to be the 4th nation to ever achieve a soft landing on the moon

A soft landing takes place when a spacecraft lands intact on the lunar surface and does not, intentionally or unintentionally, crash. Till date, four countries – the former Soviet Union, the United States, China and Israel – have previously attempted such landings on the moon. All but Israel have succeeded. This means if Chandrayaan-3 is a success, India will be the fourth nation to ever accomplish this feat. Follow Chandrayaan-3 Launch LIVE Updates Here.

The Chandrayaan-2 mission, which ended in a “hard landing” on the lunar surface on September 6, 2019, was also an orbiter mission (which succeeded). Thus, it is not included in Nasa’s aggregation of past lander attempts. Where Chandrayaan-3 lies in the historical context of lunar exploration. Read our report on Chandrayaan-3 

"Hello! This is #Chandrayaan3 with a special update. I want to let everyone know that it has been an amazing journey for me so far and now I am going to enter the Lunar Orbit today (August 5, 2023) at around 19:00 hrs IST. To know where I am and what I'm doing, stay tuned!" ISRO's LVM3-M4/CHANDRAYAAN-3 MISSION posted on X (formerly Twitter) on Saturday.

Lunar Orbit Insertion (LOI) manoeuvre of Chandryaan-2 was completed successfully on August 20, 2019. The duration of manoeuvre was 1738 seconds beginning from 9:02am IST. The Chandrayaan-3 mission is also expected to follow the same procedure.

India's Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft was recently spotted by private astronomers using a telescope. Here's our detailed report on Chandrayaan'3 tracking

On July 14, LVM3 M4 vehicle successfully launched Chandrayaan-3 into orbit.