New Delhi, August 16, 2023: A significant milestone has been achieved by ISRO’s Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft on Wednesday, as it successfully completed its fifth and final orbit maneuver to reach its designated lunar surface destination. This achievement marks a crucial step towards the completion of India’s ambitious third Moon mission. With its lunar-bound maneuvers concluded, the spacecraft is now poised for the separation of its propulsion module and lander module, as confirmed by the Indian Space Research Organisation.
The lander module consists of two integral components – Vikram, the lander, and Pragyan, the rover.
In a tweet, ISRO announced, “Today’s successful firing, which was of short duration, has positioned Chandrayaan-3 into its intended orbit of 153 km x 163 km. With this achievement, the lunar-bound maneuvers have been successfully carried out. The Propulsion Module and the Lander Module are now gearing up for their respective independent journeys.” The planned separation of the lander module from the propulsion module is set to occur on August 17.
Launched on July 14, Chandrayaan-3 entered lunar orbit on August 5. Following this, a series of three orbit reduction maneuvers took place on August 6, 9, and 14 to progressively align the spacecraft’s trajectory with the Moon.
In the unfolding mission, ISRO is meticulously conducting a sequence of maneuvers to gradually lower Chandrayaan-3’s orbit and align it with the lunar poles. The spacecraft remains on course for a gentle landing in the southern polar region of the Moon on August 23. This successful execution of the final orbit maneuver brings ISRO one step closer to achieving yet another remarkable feat in space exploration.
