Moon has always been a matter of curiosity for humans. Scientists and the entire human race have always been curious about the moon. The closest and coldest planet to the Earth has been considered very suitable for life outside the Earth. This is the reason why space agencies of many countries have been sending their vehicles to the moon from time to time. India is also not behind in this task. India has continuously achieved new achievements in space. First Chandrayaan-1, then Chandrayaan-2 and now Chandrayaan-3. Overcoming all the challenges, today India has made a strong identity at the global level along with taking a huge leap in the world of space. If India’s Chandrayaan Mission 3 is launched successfully today India will write a new history.
Chandrayaan-1
15 years ago, India achieved such an achievement in the field of space science, which only a few selected countries had.
15 years ago, in the country’s first lunar mission, a spacecraft was successfully entered into the moon’s orbit, which proved to be a milestone for India’s space mission.
In November 2003, the Government of India approved ISRO’s proposal for the first Indian Moon mission, Chandrayaan-1.
About 5 years later, on October 22, 2008, Chandrayaan-1 was successfully launched.
Chandrayaan-1 was launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Center Sri Harikota through the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, i.e. PSLV-C 11 rocket.
Chandrayaan-1 reached the Moon five days later on October 27, 2008.
There, first he revolved around the moon in a circular orbit, staying 1000 kilometers away from it. After that it went closer to the Moon and from November 12, 2008 started orbiting the Moon every 2 hours from a distance of just 100 kms.
11 scientific instruments made in India, America, Britain, Germany, Sweden and Bulgaria were also installed in this spacecraft.
The weight of this spacecraft was 1380 kg. Chandrayaan-1 was India’s first spacecraft mission beyond Earth’s orbit.
Its purpose was to expand our knowledge about the only natural satellite of the Earth. Objective of Chandrayaan-1
What was achieved by Chandrayaan-1 mission?
To place an unmanned spacecraft in orbit around the Moon To map the minerals and chemicals of the Moon’s surface. To upgrade the technical base in the country.
Through Chandrayaan-1, along with the search for water and ice on the surface of the Moon, it was to detect mineral and chemical elements and prepare 3-D pictures of both sides of the Moon.
On May 19, 2009, Chandrayaan-1’s orbit was raised from 100 to 200 km after successfully completing all the major objectives.
A horizontal cave-like structure was found on the surface of the Moon, which is called a lava cube. It was found in a length of about 1.7 kilometers and a width of 120 meters.
This mission was sent for 2 years but on August 29, 2009, it suddenly lost radio contact. A few days after this, ISRO had officially announced the end of this mission.
By that time the spacecraft had completed orbiting the Moon more than 3400 times. It orbited the Moon for 312 days and transmitted a wide range of data from sophisticated sensors. By this time, the vehicle had fulfilled most of the scientific objectives.
In addition to sending over 70,000 photographs of the lunar surface, the vehicle captured breathtaking views of mountains and craters in the permanently shadowed regions of the lunar polar regions.
This spacecraft also provided valuable data related to the chemical and mineral content found on the Moon. The quality of the data received from the vehicle was very good.
All the primary goals and objectives of Chandrayaan-1 were successfully achieved within 8 months of launch.
Using the data of Chandrayaan-1, information related to snow on the moon was collected. confirmation of ice on the moon
Chandrayaan-2
Chandrayaan-2 had failed to land safely on the lunar surface in 2019, due to which the ISRO team was very disappointed. Then the then ISRO chief K.K. People still remember the pictures of Prime Minister Narendra Modi hugging Siwan and comforting him.
Scientific objectives and features of Chandrayaan-2 Chandrayaan-2 was India’s second mission to the Moon.
This was India’s most difficult mission so far.
It was an advanced version of the mission Chandrayaan launched in 2008.
Significantly, the Chandrayaan mission had only orbited the moon, but in the Chandrayaan-2 mission, preparations were also made to land a rover on the lunar surface.
All parts of this mission have been made indigenously by ISRO in India. It included Orbiter, Lander and Rover.
The weight of Chandrayaan-2 was 3,877 kg.
The first objective of this mission was to land safely on the lunar surface and then operate the robotic rover on the surface.
Its main objective was to map the lunar surface, detect the presence of minerals, scan the outer atmosphere of the moon and detect the presence of water in one form or the other.
Another objective of this mission was to further improve our understanding of the moon and to make discoveries that would benefit humanity.
Chandrayaan-2 failed to land safely on the lunar surface in 2019.
Chandrayaan-3
Under the country’s ambitious lunar mission, Chandrayaan-3 will be carried by ‘Fat Boy’ LVM-M4 rocket. It will be launched from the space center at Sriharikota at 2.35 pm today. If all goes well, it will land on the Moon by the end of August. Scientists are aiming to master the soft landing technique on the lunar surface after working hard for hours at the Satish Dhawan Space Center here. If India succeeds in doing so, it will become the fourth country in this list after the US, China and the former Soviet Union.
The specialty and purpose of Chandrayaan-3?
The space institute said that Chandrayaan-3, the third lunar exploration mission, is all set for departure in the fourth operational mission (M4) of the LVM3 launcher.
ISRO is going to touch new heights by soft-landing on the surface of the moon with its lunar module and performing a walk on its ground.
This mission can also prove helpful for future interplanetary missions.
The Chandrayaan-3 mission consists of an indigenous propulsion module, a lander module and a rover, with the objective of developing and demonstrating new technologies required for interplanetary missions.
Under the mission, a 43.5 meter long rocket is to be launched from another launch pad. The longest and heaviest LVM3 rocket (formerly known as GSLV MkIII) is also fondly called ‘Fat Boy’ by ISRO scientists because of its heavy payload capacity.
This ‘Fat Boy’ has completed six successful campaigns in a row.
The LVM3 rocket is a combination of three modules, which include propulsion, lander and rover. The rover is placed inside the lander.
Friday’s mission is the fourth operational flight of LVM3, which aims to launch Chandrayaan-3 into geosynchronous orbit.
ISRO said that the LVM3 vehicle has proved its efficiency and has accomplished many complex missions, including multi-satellite launches, interplanetary missions, among others.
Apart from this, it is the longest and heaviest launch vehicle, which works to carry Indian and international consumer satellites.
The reason for launching in the month of July is exactly the same as the Chandrayaan-2 mission (July 22, 2019) because at this time of the year the Earth and its satellite Moon are very close to each other.
Friday’s mission will also be on the lines of Chandrayaan-2, where scientists will demonstrate several capabilities.
These include reaching the Moon’s orbit, using the Lander to safely land the vehicle on the Moon’s surface and the Rover coming out of the Lander to study the Moon’s surface.
In the Chandrayaan-2 mission, the lander could not land safely on the surface and crashed, due to which ISRO’s attempt failed.
Scientists have left no stone unturned to successfully land the lander in the month of August.
The launch rehearsal, which included preparations and procedures for the launch, took place on Tuesday at Sriharikota and the rehearsal lasted for more than 24 hours.
The next day, the scientists completed the mission readiness review.
Timeline of ISRO’s Mission to the Moon
August 15, 2003: The then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee announced the Chandrayaan programme.
22 October 2008: Chandrayaan-1 took off from the Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota. 8 November 2008: Chandrayaan-1 entered the Lunar Transfer Trajectory to be established on the trajectory.
14 November 2008: Chandrayaan-1 crashed near the Moon’s south pole but confirmed the presence of water molecules on the lunar surface.
28 August 2009: According to ISRO, the Chandrayaan-1 program ended. 22 July 2019: Chandrayaan-2 was launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota.
20 August 2019: Chandrayaan-2 spacecraft entered the Moon’s orbit.
September 2, 2019: The lander ‘Vikram’ was separated while circling the moon in the polar orbit of the moon, but at an altitude of 2.1 kilometers from the lunar surface, the lander lost contact with the ground station.
14 July 2023: Chandrayaan-3 will take off from the second launchpad at the Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota.
23/24 August 2023: ISRO scientists have planned a soft landing on the lunar surface on 23-24 August so that India can join the list of countries to achieve this feat.
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