Chandrayaan-3 update: Lunar spacecraft inches closer to moon. What's ahead for the mission?

Chandrayaan-3: The Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft successfully entered the lunar orbit on Sunday, marking a significant milestone. Its safe landing near the Moon's south pole between August 23 and 24 is crucial, and all efforts will be made to ensure its success.

"The retrofitting of engines brought it closer to the Moon's surface, now to 170 km x 4,313 km. The next operation to further reduce the orbit is scheduled for August 9, between 13:00 and 14:00 hours IST," the ISRO posted on social media platform X on Sunday.

Chandrayaan-3: Mission timeline

July 6: ISRO announced the launch date for Mission Chandrayaan-3, set for July 14, from Sriharikota's second launch pad.

July 7: Successful completion of vehicle electrical tests.

July 11: A comprehensive 'Launch Rehearsal' spanning 24 hours concluded, simulating the entire launch process.

July 14: LVM3 M4 vehicle triumphantly launched Chandrayaan-3 into its designated orbit.

July 15: The first orbit-raising manoeuvre, Earth-bound firing-1, was executed successfully at ISTRAC/ISRO, Bengaluru. The spacecraft reached a 41762 km x 173 km orbit.

July 17: Accomplishment of the second orbit-raising manoeuvre resulted in the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft orbiting at 41603 km x 226 km.

July 22: Successful completion of the fourth orbit-raising manoeuvre, Earth-bound perigee firing, establishing the spacecraft in a 71351 km x 233 km orbit.

July 25: Implementation of another successful orbit-raising manoeuvre.

August 1: Chandrayaan-3 achieved a significant milestone by being inserted into the trans-lunar orbit, reaching an orbit of 288 km x 369328 km.

August 5: Chandrayaan-3 accomplished a major triumph by achieving successful insertion into the lunar orbit, attaining the intended orbit of 164 km x 18074 km.

August 6: The spacecraft orbit is lowered to 170 km x 4,313 km around the moon

Chandrayaan-3: What’s ahead for the mission?

The crucial milestone of the lunar mission called the Lunar Orbit Insertion (LOI) was the third phase of Chandrayaan-3. The first phase of the mission included pre-launch and earth-bound manoeuvre, called Earth Centric Phase. The second phase called the Lunar Transfer Phase transferred the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft in the trajectory phase towards the moon.

Upcoming phases of the mission:

Moon-bound manoeuvre phase (Phase-4)

PM and Lunar Module Separation (Phase-5)

De-boost phase (Phase-6)

Pre-landing phase (Phase-7)

Landing phase (Phase-8)

Normal phase for Lander and Rover (Phase-9)

Moon-centric normal orbit phase (100 km circular phase) for propulsion module (Phase-10)

In the next 10 days, a precise landing site near the moon's south pole will be determined. Subsequently, the propulsion module will detach from the Lander while in orbit. Following this, the Lander will descend from orbit and make a soft landing attempt.

(With inputs from agencies)

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