Chandrayaan 3 successful launch! What next? What will happen in next 42 days??

 Chandrayaan 3 successful launch! What next? what will happen in next 42 days??

In this blog:

• Introduction to Chandrayaan 3
• Objectives of the mission
• The launch of Chandrayaan 3
• The components of Chandrayaan 3(lander, and rover)
• How it is different from Chandrayaan 2
• The scientific goals of the mission
• The significance of the mission
• What next? what will happen in next 42 days??

Introduction to Chandrayaan 3

Chandrayaan 3 is India's third lunar exploration mission, launched by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on July 14, 2023. The mission consists of a lander and a rover, similar to Chandrayaan 2, but without an orbiter. The lander and rover are expected to land on the moon on August 23, 2023, at a site near the lunar south pole.

The main objective of Chandrayaan 3 is to demonstrate India's capability of soft landing on the moon and operating a rover on the lunar surface. The mission also carries several scientific instruments to study the moon's geology, mineralogy, seismology and atmosphere. The lander and rover will operate for one lunar day, which is about 14 Earth days.

Chandrayaan 3 is a follow-up mission to Chandrayaan 2, which was launched in 2019 but failed to achieve a soft landing due to a software glitch. Chandrayaan 2's orbiter, however, is still functioning and will provide communication and navigation support to Chandrayaan 3. Chandrayaan 3 is also a precursor to the Lunar Polar Exploration Mission, a joint mission with Japan planned for 2025.

Chandrayaan 3 is a milestone in India's space programme and a testament to its scientific and technological prowess. The mission will enhance our understanding of the moon and its potential for future exploration and utilization.

Objectives of the mission Chandrayaan 3

Chandrayaan 3 is India's third lunar exploration mission. The main objectives of the mission are:

• To demonstrate the capability of landing a rover on the lunar surface and operating it for at least 14 Earth days. The rover will have six wheels and a robotic arm, and will be able to communicate with the lander and the Earth station.

• To explore the lunar south pole region and conduct scientific experiments using the rover and the lander. The south pole region is of interest because it may contain water ice and other resources that could support future human missions.

• To collect and analyze data on the lunar topography, mineralogy, elemental abundance, surface temperature, and lunar exosphere. The lander and the rover will carry various sensors, cameras, spectrometers, and radars to measure these parameters and send the data back to Earth.

The mission will consist of a lander and a rover, similar to Chandrayaan 2, but without an orbiter. The lander and the rover will be equipped with various instruments to perform the scientific objectives. The mission will also test some new technologies, such as a variable thrust propulsion system, a laser retroreflector array, and a passive thermal control system. Chandrayaan 3 is expected to make India the fourth country in the world to successfully land a spacecraft on the moon after Russia, USA and China.

The launch of Chandrayaan 3

Chandrayaan 3 is India's third lunar exploration mission, conducted by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). It consists of a lander and a rover similar to Chandrayaan 2, but does not have an orbiter. Its propulsion module behaves like a communication relay satellite. 

The mission aims to demonstrate safe and soft landing on the surface of the moon, rover operations on the lunar terrain, and in-situ scientific experiments on the lunar surface. The lander and rover are expected to land on the moon on August 23 or 24, 2023, near the south pole region.   

The launch of Chandrayaan 3 took place on July 14, 2023, at 2:35 pm IST from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota. The launch vehicle was LVM3 M4, a three-stage heavy-lift rocket capable of carrying up to 8 tonnes of payload to low Earth orbit. The launch was successful, and the spacecraft was injected into a 100 km circular polar orbit around the moon.  

The Chandrayaan 3 spacecraft weighed 3900 kg at launch. The propulsion module weighed 2148 kg and carried the lander module (Vikram) and the rover module (Pragyan) weighing 1752 kg together. The propulsion module provided thrust and attitude control for the spacecraft during its journey to the moon and acted as a relay station for communication between the lander, rover and Earth. 

The lander module (Vikram) was designed to perform a soft landing on the lunar surface using its five thrusters and onboard sensors. It had four deployable legs and a ramp for the rover to exit. It carried three scientific instruments: a radio anatomy of moon bound hypersensitive ionosphere and atmosphere (RAMBHA), a chandra's surface thermo-physical experiment (ChaSTE), and an instrument for lunar seismic activity (ILSA). The lander had a mission life of one lunar day (14 Earth days). 

The rover module (Pragyan) was a six-wheeled robotic vehicle that could travel up to 500 m from the lander. It carried two scientific instruments: a laser induced breakdown spectroscope (LIBS) and an alpha particle X-ray spectrometer (APXS). The rover had a mission life of one lunar day (14 Earth days) and operated on solar power. 

The components of Chandrayaan 3(lander, and rover)

Chandrayaan 3 will use the same lander and rover design as Chandrayaan 2, but with improved software and testing. The mission does not have an orbiter, but the propulsion module that will carry the lander and rover to the moon will also perform a scientific experiment to observe Earth as an exoplanet.

The Chandrayaan 3 lander and rover are equipped with various instruments to study the moon's surface, such as cameras, spectrometers, seismometers, and thermal probes. The rover weighs about 26 kilograms and can travel up to 500 meters from the lander. The lander and rover are expected to operate for about 14 Earth days, or one lunar day. The mission will target a landing site near the moon's south pole, where water ice has been detected in permanently shadowed craters. The mission will also contribute to India's space ambitions and showcase its technological capabilities.

How it is different from Chandrayaan 2

Chandrayaan 2 and 3 are India's second and third lunar exploration missions, respectively, conducted by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). Both missions consist of a lander and a rover, but Chandrayaan 2 also has an orbiter that is still operational around the moon. Both missions aim to demonstrate soft landing and rover operations on the lunar surface, as well as conduct scientific experiments. 

The main difference between Chandrayaan 2 and 3 is the landing site and the launch vehicle. Chandrayaan 2 attempted to land near the south pole of the moon, which is a region of scientific interest due to the presence of water ice and craters. However, the lander lost contact with Earth during the final descent phase and crashed on the lunar surface. The launch vehicle for Chandrayaan 2 was GSLV Mk III, a three-stage rocket with a cryogenic upper stage. 

Chandrayaan 3 is expected to land near the same region as Chandrayaan 2, but with a different trajectory and landing strategy. The launch vehicle for Chandrayaan 3 is LVM3 M4, a modified version of GSLV Mk III with an additional strap-on booster. This increases the payload capacity and allows for a more direct transfer to the lunar orbit.  

Another difference between Chandrayaan 2 and 3 is the design and configuration of the spacecraft modules. Chandrayaan 2 had an orbiter module that carried eight scientific instruments and provided communication and navigation support for the lander and rover. The orbiter had a mission life of one year and is still functioning around the moon. The lander module (Vikram) and the rover module (Pragyan) carried four and two scientific instruments, respectively. The lander had four deployable legs and a ramp for the rover to exit. The rover had six wheels and could travel up to 500 m from the lander. Both modules had a mission life of one lunar day (14 Earth days) and operated on solar power. 

Chandrayaan 3 does not have an orbiter module, but instead has a propulsion module that behaves like a communication relay satellite. The propulsion module provides thrust and attitude control for the spacecraft during its journey to the moon and acts as a relay station for communication between the lander, rover and Earth. The propulsion module has a mission life of six months. The lander module (Vikram) and the rover module (Pragyan) are similar to Chandrayaan 2, but with some modifications and improvements based on the lessons learned from the previous mission. The lander has five thrusters instead of four and has more sensors for guidance and navigation. The rover has improved mobility and autonomy features. Both modules carry three scientific instruments each, some of which are different from Chandrayaan 2. Both modules have a mission life of one lunar day (14 Earth days) and operate on solar power. 

Chandrayaan 3 is a follow-on mission to Chandrayaan 2, which failed to achieve a soft landing on the moon in September 2019 due to a software glitch in the final descent phase. 

The scientific goals of the Chandrayaan 3

The mission aims to land a rover on the south pole of the Moon, where no other country has reached before. The rover will conduct various experiments to study the lunar surface, subsurface, and environment. Some of the scientific goals of the Chandrayaan 3 are:

• To map the topography and mineralogy of the lunar south pole region.

• To measure the thermal properties and seismic activity of the lunar crust and mantle.

• To detect the presence and distribution of water ice and other volatiles in the permanently shadowed craters.

• To analyze the solar wind and cosmic ray interactions with the lunar surface and atmosphere.

• To test new technologies and capabilities for future lunar exploration and utilization.

Chandrayaan 3 is expected to enhance our understanding of the Moon's origin, evolution, and resources. It will also demonstrate India's technological prowess and scientific leadership in space exploration.

The significance of Chandrayaan 3

The mission aims to land a rover on the south pole of the moon, where no other country has explored before. The south pole is of great scientific interest, as it may contain water ice and other resources that could support future human settlements. Chandrayaan 3 will also carry out experiments to study the lunar surface, geology, mineralogy and atmosphere. The mission will demonstrate India's technological prowess and scientific curiosity, as well as contribute to the global understanding of the moon and its potential benefits for humanity.

What next? what will happen in next 42 days??

The journey of Chandrayaan 3 from Earth to the moon will take about 42 days, during which it will perform several maneuvers to adjust its orbit and trajectory. Here are some of the key milestones of the mission:

July 14: Launch from Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, India.

July 14-20: Chandrayaan 3 performs five orbit-raising maneuvers around the Earth, gradually increasing its apogee (farthest point from Earth) from 250 km to 150,000 km.

July 21: Chandrayaan 3 performs a trans-lunar injection (TLI) maneuver, which puts it on a trajectory towards the moon.

July 21-31: Chandrayaan 3 coasts towards the moon, covering a distance of about 380,000 km.

August 1: Chandrayaan 3 performs a lunar orbit insertion (LOI) maneuver, which slows it down and captures it into an elliptical orbit around the moon.

August 2-11: Chandrayaan 3 performs four orbit-lowering maneuvers around the moon, gradually reducing its perilune (closest point to the moon) from 18,000 km to 100 km.

August 12: Chandrayaan 3 separates its lander and rover module from the orbiter module. The orbiter continues to circle the moon in a 100 km x 100 km orbit, while the lander and rover begin their descent towards the lunar surface.

August 13: Chandrayaan 3's lander and rover perform a powered descent and soft-landing on a flat plain near the south pole of the moon. The landing site is about 600 km from the lunar south pole, where water-ice is expected to be present in permanently shadowed craters. The landing is expected to take place at around 10:30 am IST (5:00 am GMT).

August 14-September 22: Chandrayaan 3's rover deploys from the lander and begins its exploration of the lunar terrain. The rover has a mass of 27 kg and can travel up to 500 m from the lander. It is equipped with cameras, spectrometers, and a ground-penetrating radar to study the lunar surface. The rover is expected to operate for at least one lunar day (14 Earth days), while the lander is expected to operate for at least two lunar days (28 Earth days). Both the lander and the rover will communicate with the orbiter, which will relay their data and images to Earth.

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