He disembarked from the Vikram lander and began his scientific work on India’s first lander, Prague. The Indian Space Research Agency, ISRO, issued a statement on X (formerly Twitter) about the successful maneuver and stated that all systems are working properly.
As is well known, the Chandrayaan-3 lander made a successful landing on the moon on Wednesday, making India the fourth country to send an instrument to the celestial body after the United States, Russia and China. And most importantly, they were the first to land near the South Pole, where, according to scientists’ measurements, there is a large amount of water.
The presence of water is crucial from the point of view of space exploration, not only because it is the basis of life, but its ingredients are also crucial: hydrogen for fuel, and oxygen for breathing. Thus, the Indian mission could have a significant impact on when humanity will reach Mars.
The name of the 26-kilogram Pragjan rover means wisdom in Sanskrit. He will spend the next two weeks exploring the probe’s environment and analyzing the chemical composition of the soil. The device moves at a rate of one centimeter per second, and the ISRO logo embedded in the wheels can be seen on the track left in the lunar dust.
Csandraján-3’s surface mission is for this lunar day only, because both the station and the rover are powered by solar panels, and it is not yet known if it will operate after the two-week lunar night.
(MTI, Space.com)
