India and its ambition to explore the Moon.

The Indian Space Research Organization is working to land a spacecraft on the surface of the Moon, a crucial mission for the country's position in the space sector.

The LVM3 rocket launched the Vikram lander of the Chandrayaan-3 mission from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at 4:05 PM on July 14 ( Hanoi time). The lander gradually increased its altitude, then fired its engines on July 31 to head towards the Moon. It entered orbit around the Moon on August 5.

Vikram continued its approach to the Moon on August 20th, after completing its final de-boosting maneuver. With this maneuver, the lander reached an orbit where its closest point to the Moon is 25 km and its furthest point is 134 km. It is expected to land on the lunar surface at 7:34 PM on August 23rd (Hanoi time).

Vikram is targeting the Moon's south pole, where water ice could exist, useful for manufacturing propellant or sustaining life. Vikram carries a small robot called Pragyan.

Vikram is approximately 2 meters tall and weighs over 1,700 kg, including the 26 kg Pragyan rover. A large portion of Vikram's mass is propellant. If the landing is successful, the pair are expected to operate for about two weeks, conducting a series of experiments such as spectroscopic analysis of the mineral composition of the lunar surface.

Past efforts

Chandrayaan-1, the first lunar mission in India's Chandrayaan program, launched in 2008. The mission involved an orbiter orbiting the Moon at an altitude of 100 km to map the Moon's geology, minerals, and chemistry. After the spacecraft completed all its main mission objectives, its orbital altitude was increased to 200 km in May 2009. The mission ended when experts lost contact with it in late August 2009.

In 2019, India attempted to land a spacecraft on the Moon but failed. The Chandrayaan-2 orbital spacecraft successfully deployed, but the lander and robot were destroyed when it crashed onto the Moon near the intended landing site of Chandrayaan-3.

Simulation of the Chandrayaan-2 spacecraft operating in lunar orbit. Photo: Space. — Simulation of the Chandrayaan-2 spacecraft operating in lunar orbit. Photo: *Space.*

The rugged terrain presents a challenge for spacecraft seeking to land on the Moon's south pole. ISRO scientists say they have made adjustments to increase the chances of a successful landing for the Chandrayaan-3 mission, including adding a system to expand the potential landing area. The lander also carries more fuel and is equipped with a more robust, impact-resistant landing platform.

Another mission targeting the area near the Moon's south pole was Russia's Luna-25. However, this mission failed when Luna-25 crashed onto the lunar surface, failing to land on August 21 as planned. ispace, a Japanese private space startup, also failed in its attempt to land on the Moon in April.

The mission is to help improve status.

If successful, the Chandrayaan-3 mission would make India the fourth country in the world to land on the surface of the Moon, after the Soviet Union, the United States, and China. The mission also marks India's rise as a space power, just before its elections next year.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government is also seeking to boost investment in private space launches and satellite-related businesses. India hopes its private space companies will increase their market share in the international launch market fivefold in the next decade.

As Chandrayaan-3 launched, Modi shared that ISRO was writing a new chapter in India's space epic, fueling the dreams and ambitions of every Indian. ISRO plans to broadcast live the landing process of the mission, starting at 6:50 PM on August 23 (Hanoi time).

Thu Thao (According to Reuters, Space )

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