ISRO to launch Chandrayaan-3 in July this year

Tags: Science and Technology National News

ISRO Chairman S Somnath has announced that Chandrayaan-3, the successor of Chandrayaan-2, will be launched in July this year.

An Overview of the News

• The announcement was made after the successful launch of second generation navigation satellite NSV-01 from the Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota.

• The primary objective of Chandrayaan-3 is to demonstrate India's end-to-end capabilities in lunar exploration and its ability to safely land on and orbit the Moon.

• The mission will consist of an indigenous lander module, a propulsion module and a rover.

• Both the lander and the rover will be equipped with scientific payloads, which will enable them to conduct experiments and collect valuable data on the lunar surface.

Important Points

Chandrayaan-1:

• It was the first Indian lunar probe launched by ISRO.

• It was part of the Chandrayaan program and was launched in October 2008 and the mission lasted till August 2009.

• Chandrayaan-1 consisted of a Lunar Orbiter and an Impactor.

• The Lunar Orbiter conducted scientific research and collected data about the Moon.

• The objective of the mission was to make a detailed map of the Moon's surface and study its composition.

• Chandrayaan-1 had advanced instruments to test the presence of water ice and minerals.

• The spacecraft carried both Indian and international scientific payloads.

• Chandrayaan-1 made important discoveries including evidence of water molecules on the lunar surface.

Chandrayaan-2:

• India's second lunar exploration mission developed by ISRO.

• Components: Lunar Orbiter, Vikram Lander and Pragyan Rover.

• Scientific Objective: Study the composition of the lunar surface and find lunar water.

• Launch: July 22, 2019, from Satish Dhawan Space Centre.

• Landing Site: Intended for the south polar region of the Moon at a latitude of 70°S.

• Planned Landing Date: September 6, 2019

• Landing Result: The lander crashed due to a software glitch.

Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO):

• It was established on 15 August 1969.

• It is the national space agency of India. It launches its space rocket from Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.

• Headquarters: Bengaluru

• Chairman: S Somnath