Chandrayaan 3: The plans to resuscitate the lander Vikram and rover Pragyan by the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) have been moved to Saturday. “Earlier we planned to reactivate the Pragyan rover and Vikram lander on the evening of 22nd September, but due to some reasons we will now do it tomorrow on September 23,” stated Nilesh Desai, Director of the Space Applications Centre. On August 23, the mission’s Vikram lander and Pragyan rover made a safe landing on the lunar surface at a spot now known as “Shiv Shakti Point.” They will be activated once more on September 23.
Successful Lunar Tests and Sleep Mode Transition Precede Reactivation
After conducting tests on the lunar surface successfully earlier this month, the lander and rover were switched into sleep mode. On September 2, the rover went into sleep mode, and on September 4, the lander. The Pragyan rover and Vikram Lander carried out a number of lunar experiments while they were in service. The Pragyan rover travelled more than 100 metres across the lunar surface, showing that sulphur (S) is present on the lunar surface close to the south pole. Innovating measurements of the near-surface lunar plasma environment over the south polar region were also made by the Vikram lander.
Vikram Lander’s Successful Moon Hop and Hopes for Extended Mission
Isro had initially anticipated that the rover would travel 300–350 metres. The rover, however, has barely advanced 105 metres thus far for a variety of reasons. Despite this, the project has succeeded in going above and beyond its goals, with the Vikram lander successfully completing a hop test on the moon, a noteworthy accomplishment for upcoming Moon missions and human exploration. The batteries, which were fueled by sunshine, had been left charged before the gadgets were placed to sleep, and the solar panels had been positioned to receive light at dawn. If the equipment responds and recharges effectively, the mission’s life will be extended, enabling researchers to collect more samples and carry out their examination of the lunar surface.
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