Chandrayaan-3 update | Indian spacecraft to enter Moon's sphere of influence

By India Today Science Desk: The Indian Space Research Organisation's (Isro) Chandrayaan-3 mission is set to make a significant achievement in space exploration as it enters the Moon's sphere of influence on August 5.

This marks a crucial phase in the mission, which aims to demonstrate a safe and soft landing on the lunar surface, roving on the moon, and conducting in-situ scientific experiments.

The Chandrayaan-3 mission was launched on July 14 and has been gradually boosting its orbit around Earth before making its final journey towards the Moon. The spacecraft's perigee burn has successfully raised its orbit to 288km x 369328 km, positioning it to enter the Moon's sphere of influence.

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The process of lunar orbit insertion is a complex one. To achieve this, the spacecraft first maneuvers away from Earth's orbit and then enters a crucial point in the Moon's gravity known as 'perigee,' where the Moon's influence on the spacecraft becomes apparent.

At this stage, the thrusters on Chandrayaan-3 are used to move tangentially into the Moon's orbit.

Once the spacecraft reaches the lunar orbit, the Lander will separate from the Propulsion Module and attempt a soft landing near the South Pole of the moon on August 23, at 5.47 pm.

The Propulsion Module and Lander separation is scheduled to happen on August 17, with a series of deboost maneuvers planned before the power descent phase for the soft landing on the moon.

Chandrayaan-3 carries a set of eight payloads, including one provided by Nasa. These instruments will conduct various experiments to study the near-surface plasma activities on the Moon, the thermo-physical behavior of the Lunar surface, and examine the resourcefulness of the Lunar soil.

One of the exciting experiments onboard is SHAPE, short for the Spectro-polarimetry of Habitable Planet Earth, designed to look for changes that a life-supporting atmosphere makes to the starlight passing through it.

The mission also includes a special instrument called ILSA (Instrument for Lunar Seismic Activity), designed to detect and study lunar quakes. This research is crucial for future lunar exploration missions, especially if humans are to stay on the Lunar Surface for extended periods or use it as a base for interplanetary travel.

The Chandrayaan-3 mission is a stepping stone towards Isro's future interplanetary missions, demonstrating crucial capabilities and paving the way for further exploration of our celestial neighbors.

As we await the successful lunar orbit insertion, the world watches with bated breath, hoping for another giant leap in our understanding of the universe.