Sunrise On The Moon

Chandrayaan-3 is a great step forward for the Indian space programme

- DR V.K. SARASWAT

As the dust settles around the lander module of Chandrayaan-3, India’s jubilant masses celebrate an achievement of its best minds. The successful soft landing of Chandrayaan-3 on the moon is a historic moment for India, making it one of only four nations to have demonstrated lunar soft landing capability, after Russia, the US and China. The Indian space programme has established its leadership in space with indigenous cryogenic engines and initiatives to de-clutter the orbit. Further, the Chandrayaan missions are a testament to its continued commitment to science in space. The Chandrayaan-3 mission will help India and the world learn more about the moon and its potential for resources and exploration.

What’s the big deal?

In order to understand what makes the Chandrayaan-3 mission so important, and what this achievement really means for India, it is necessary to look at the history of lunar exploration. The US and Russia established their lunar soft landing capabilities in 1966, nearly a decade into the space race and after several failed attempts. As we know, the Apollo missions between 1969 and 1972 made the US the only country to have human moon landing capability. It is worth noting that since then, most missions to the moon were primarily designed as orbiters with probes (or the orbiter at its end of life) that would crash into the moon.