Unlike its predecessor, Chandrayaan-3 will only have a lander and a rover but not an orbiter. At the same time, ISRO is also preparing for its first ever human space mission Gaganyaan.
Chandrayaan-3 is likely to be launched in early 2021 instead of the second half of 2020 as suggested by the government. Union Minister Jitendra Singh made the announcement on Sunday while adding that India’s mission to Moon will include a rover and a lander but not an orbiter like its predecessor.
Following the hard landing of Chandrayaan-2 in September of last year, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) had mentioned its plans of launching another mission to the moon by the end of 2020. However, the novel coronavirus pandemic has led to a delay in the launch of Chandrayaan-3.
Aimed at the Moon’s South Pole, Chandrayaan-2 was launched on July 22, 2019. The Vikram hard-landed on the lunar surface on September 7. Officials have confirmed that despite the setback, the orbiter is in working condition and is able to transmit data back to earth.
Recently, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) finally found out the cause of the failure of the Chandrayaan-2,
Jitendra Singh, Minister of State (MoS) for Department of Space said Chandrayaan-1 which was ISRO’s maiden mission to the Moon has transmitted images suggesting Moon may be rusting along the poles.
“The sign of this finding is that even though the surface of the Moon is known to have iron-rich rocks, it is not known for the presence of water and oxygen, which are the two elements needed to interact with iron to create rust,” Jitendra Singh said.
Reason for removing 5th engine
With a more tuning engine.IRSO will launch Chandrayaan-3 early 2021. ISRO also has made major design changes, removing a fifth engine, and is expected to launch the third mission to the moon in 2021. Meanwhile, photos from India’s earlier spacecraft showed the moon’s surface rusting, which is different from NASA belief.
The Indian Space Research Organization in Bangalore launched a lander last year that lost control and made a hard landing on the moon’s surface. After the experts analyzed the reason. Earlier simulations and analysis showed that four engines were sufficient. However, ISRO officials consider the fifth engine to be a “necessary condition for a smooth landing”.
The earlier analysis estimated dust to cause trouble, but now another analysis by ISRO experts suggests that dust will not be a problem. In view of the new analysis, it has been decided to remove the fifth engine at the third launch. You will see that the lander has only four engines.
In addition, ISRO plans to make minor changes to the lander’s legs,” the scientist said. The decision included a laser Doppler speedometer (LDV) to better measure the speed of landing and remove the central engine. “In addition, the redesign of Chandrayan-3 includes some changes in LDV, software and algorithms, enhanced provisioning, and better power and communication systems.
Chandrayaan- 3 will take off in early 2021, and the Indian Space Research Organization plans to build a lunar ring 200 kilometers from Bangalore. These craters are 10 meters in diameter and 3 meters deep.
Last year, according to ISRO, the lander’s trajectory began to deviate 2.1 kilometers from the moon, after which the mission control center lost all communication with the lander. Despite weeks of tireless efforts, no re-establishment of contacts has been possible. However, the Mission Chandrayaan- 2 was 95-98% successful, as all the instruments were functioning well and data were sent back to the Indian Space Research Organization.
Recently,ISRO data suggest that the moon may rust. In the study, the moon was mentioned to be slightly red, indicating that iron in the form of red-black minerals called hetero-iron forms formed on its surface, especially at the poles.
The sign of this discovery is that, although iron-rich rocks are known to be present on the moon’s surface, rust is produced from iron because of the presence of water and oxygen, two essential elements of interaction.
NASA scientists, on the other hand, were puzzled and surprised by India’s findings.