The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on Tuesday successfully performed the third orbit-raising manoeuvre (Earth-bound perigee firing) of the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft.
The next firing is planned for July 20 between 2 pm and 3 pm, the national space agency headquartered here said.
“The third orbit-raising manoeuvre (Earth-bound perigee firing) is performed successfully from ISTRAC (ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network)/ISRO, Bengaluru,” it said.
The Chandrayaan-3 mission to the Moon was launched on July 14.
After the successful launch of Chandrayaan-3 on GSLV Mark 3 (LVM 3) heavy-lift launch vehicle last week, Director of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) S Somanath said that landing is one important step for further exploration.
“Chandrayaan-3 is a very important step…Landing this time is very important. Unless you land, you cannot take samples, you cannot land human beings, and you cannot create moon bases. So, landing is one important step for further exploration,” said ISRO chief S Somanath.
Chandrayaan-3 is the ISRO’s follow-up attempt after the Chandrayaan-2 mission faced challenges during its soft landing on the lunar surface in 2019 and was eventually deemed to have failed its core mission objectives.
Last week, Chandrayaan-3 was launched on GSLV Mark 3 (LVM 3) heavy-lift launch vehicle successfully from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Andhra Pradesh’s Sriharikota as per the scheduled launch time.
The journey from Earth to the moon for the spacecraft is estimated to take about a month and the landing is expected on August 23. Upon landing, it will operate for one lunar day, which is approximately 14 Earth days. One day on the Moon is equal to 14 days on Earth.
Chandrayaan-3, India’s third lunar exploration mission, will make India the fourth country after US, China, and Russia, to land its spacecraft on the surface of the moon and demonstrate the country’s abilities for safe and soft landing on the lunar surface.