Chandrayaan-3: ‘Pragyan’ completes 7 days on moon, ISRO chief says ‘everything is working fine’
Published: Aug 31, 2023, 06:18 IST | Updated: Aug 31, 2023, 06:18 IST
Somanath, Pragyaan
As the Pragyan rover, which is part of India's ambitious lunar mission Chandrayaan-3, concludes its first week on the moon's surface, S Somanath, the head of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), informed reporters that all systems on the spacecraft were working well.
Speaking to the press, the ISRO chairperson said: "Everything is working fine... All the data is coming through very well. Everything is working well. We are hopeful that by the end of 14 days, our mission will be successfully completed."
Here's what he said. Listen in!
VIDEO | "Everything is working fine, and we are hopeful that by the end of 14 days, our mission will be successfully completed," says ISRO chairman S Somanath on Chandrayaan-3.#Chandrayaan3Success pic.twitter.com/zAsGzHI9TQ
This statement comes as the ISRO shared its latest update on Chandrayaan-3.
Taking to X, formerly Twitter, on Thursday (August 31st) the space agency revealed that the spacecraft has recorded what seems to be "natural" seismic activity.
As per ISRO, the "seemingly natural" event was recorded on August 26, 2023 by the Instrument for Lunar Seismic Activity (ILSA) payload on Chandrayaan-3's Vikram Lander. On its website, the Indian Space Agency said that "the source of this event is currently under investigation."
Also read | Smile, please! Chandrayaan-3's Pragyan Rover shares first image of Vikram Lander on lunar surface
On social media platform X, formerly Twitter, ISRO said, "Chandrayaan-3 Mission: In-situ Scientific Experiments - Instrument for the Lunar Seismic Activity (ILSA) payload on Chandrayaan-3 Lander - the first Micro Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS) technology-based instrument on the moon - has recorded the movements of Rover and other payloads."
Chandrayaan-3 Mission:
In-situ Scientific Experiments
Instrument for the Lunar Seismic Activity (ILSA) payload on Chandrayaan 3 Lander
-- the first Micro Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS) technology-based instrument on the moon --
has recorded the movements of Rover and other… pic.twitter.com/Sjd5K14hPl
"Additionally, it has recorded an event, appearing to be a natural one, on August 26, 2023. The source of this event is under investigation," added the Indian space agency.
The Instrument for Lunar Seismic Activity (ILSA) is one of the payloads onboard the Chandrayaan-3 lander called Vikram.
As per ISRO, "ILSA comprises a cluster of six high-sensitivity accelerometers, which are indigenously fabricated using the Silicon Micromachining process. The core sensing element consists of a spring-mass system with comb-structured electrodes. External vibrations lead to a deflection of the spring, resulting in a change in capacitance which is converted into voltage."
"ILSA's primary objective is to measure ground vibrations generated by natural quakes, impacts, and artificial events," it adds.
With Chandrayaan-3 mission, India has become the first nation to land a spacecraft on the unexplored South Pole of the moon and just the fourth nation to land on Earth's lunar satellite. The Wednesday (August 23) landing came just days after Russia's Luna-25 failed in a similar mission.
The rover and Vikram, the lander that transported Pragyan to the Moon, are rushing to complete their experiments before the upcoming lunar night, which spans 14 Earth days and is expected to begin next week. Over the period of its two-week lifespan, rover Pragyan will amble around the relatively unmapped South Pole and transmit images and scientific data to Earth.
(With inputs from agencies)
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