India Soon To Land Space Mission On The Moon

Archival photos for news illustrations - Penumbra's lunar eclipse can be seen in Banda Aceh, Aceh, Saturday (6/5/2023). BETWEEN PHOTOs/Irwansyah Putra/toms

JAKARTA - India's third mission to explore the Moon is ready to land on the Moon on Wednesday today. India could be the first country to land at the south pole of the Earth satellite. Last month India successfully launched a Chandrayaan-3 lunar exploration mission that carried out a mission to land a rover on the Moon. India's Space Research Agency the day before said that the mission was running on schedule and the system was undergoing periodic checks. "The smooth journey continues," the agency wrote in X (Twitter) quoted from Anadolu via Antara. The Indian space agency said the Chandaayan-3 lander was ready to land Wednesday at 6.04 pm local time (19.34 WIB). India's space agency also broadcasts images of the far side of the Moon captured by lander hazard detection systems and avoidance cameras that help find safe landing areas as long as they descend to the Moon's surface. As the excitement soared in India over the much-awaited landing attempt, a special prayer was offered across the country for the success of the mission. India's attempt to land on the Moon comes days after Luna-25 failed to land on the Moon. Russia's first lunar mission in the past 47 years, which was previously expected to land Monday, is spinning out of control and then falling on the Moon. The Indian government said the Chandrayaan-3 landing was successful where its six-wheeled rover would serve for 14 days on the Moon. This spacecraft carries three major goals, namely landing safely and smoothly on the surface of the Moon, lowering rovers on the Moon, and conducting direct scientific experiments there. So far, there are only three countries, namely the United States, Russia, and China, that have successfully landed spacecraft smoothly on the Moon. If successful, India will be the first country to land at the south pole of the Moon that is rarely explored. This mission is not the first for India. The Chandrayaan-2 mission previously lowered orbiters in 2019 but its landings and cruise vehicles were destroyed by collisions. The first Chandrayaan lunar mission was carried out by India in 2008. The Chandrayaan-3 mission caught the attention of broader international collaborations for India, Interior Minister Jitendra Singh said on Tuesday.