The Indian Space Research Agency (ISRO) is gearing up for the launch of its third lunar expedition, called Chandrayaan-3. According to officials from the agency, the mission is tentatively scheduled for mid-July, with a launch window between July 12 and July 19. The exact date has not been finalized yet.
S. Somanath, the Chairman of ISRO and Secretary in the Department of Space, addressed the media and stated that the organization aims to start the moon mission on the earliest feasible date, which could be July 12 or 13.
Somanath provided more details about the preparations, revealing that the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft has undergone testing and has been placed within the rocket’s payload fairing or heat shield. The rocket, named LVM3, is currently being prepared at the Sriharikota rocket port in Andhra Pradesh.
The primary objective of Chandrayaan-3 is to achieve a safe lunar landing, followed by the deployment of a rover to conduct a series of experiments on the moon’s surface.
Compared to its predecessor, Chandrayaan-2, there have been modifications made to the lander for the upcoming mission. The new version of the lander will operate on four motors instead of five, along with other software changes implemented by ISRO.
While the official names for the lander and rover are yet to be confirmed, it was suggested that ISRO might retain the names used in the previous mission, Vikram and Pragyan.
