ISRO aims to revive Pragyan Rover and Vikram Lander on the Moon after Lunar Dawn
ISRO is preparing to revive the Vikram lander and Pragyan rover of the Chandrayaan-3 mission as dawn breaks on the Moon.
Bengaluru: India’s premier space agency, ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation), is preparing to revive communication with the Vikram lander and Pragyan rover of the Chandrayaan-3 mission as dawn breaks on the Moon. Both the lander and rover were placed in sleep mode earlier this month to conserve power as the lunar night set in. With sunlight returning to the south polar region of the Moon and optimal charging of their solar panels expected, ISRO plans to check their health, resume functionality, and potentially continue scientific experiments.
“We have put both the lander and rover on sleep mode because temperature would go as low as minus 120-200 degrees Celsius. From September 20 onwards, sunrise will be going on at the Moon, and by September 22, we hope that the solar panel and other things will be fully charged, so we will be trying to revive both the lander and rover,” explained Nilesh Desai, ISRO’s Space Applications Centre Director.
The lander and rover, with a combined mass of 1,752 kg, were initially designed to operate for one lunar daylight period (about 14 Earth days). However, ISRO hopes to extend their operational life as the Moon sees sunlight again. The lander had successfully achieved a soft landing near the Moon’s south pole on August 23, meeting one of Chandrayaan-3 mission’s primary objectives.
As sunlight returns, ISRO will attempt to awaken both the lander and rover to gather additional experimental data, further enhancing their investigation of the Moon’s surface. The success of this endeavor could provide invaluable insights into the lunar environment and pave the way for extended lunar miss
Ms Kalinga