Chandrayaan-3: Will Vikram lander wake up on Sep 22 after lunar night? Here's what can happen next

Chandrayaan-3: India’s lunar mission, Chandrayaan-3 touched down on the Moon’s surface successfully on August 23. Since then, Chandrayaan-3’s Vikram lander and Pragyan rover conducted studies on the surface and revealed various findings.

All the in-situ experiments on the lunar surface were conducted in a span of 14 Earth days, after which the Vikram lander and Pragyan rover were put to sleep mode on September 4. The lander and rover are expected to awake around September 22, as per the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

Will Vikram lander wake up again on September 22?

The Pragyan rover was put on sleep mode with the sunset on the moon. The data from all the payloads was transmitted to the Earth via Vikram lander, ISRO said.

The battery of Chandrayaan-3 is fully charged and the solar panel will receive the light at the next sunrise on the Moon expected on September 22. Vikram and Pragyan were designed to have one lunar day lifetime (i.e. 14 Earth days), butthey might still wake up on the next sunrise. And if they do not wake on September 22, thenthey will "forever stay there as India's lunar ambassador," ISRO wrote on X.

While Vikram lander remained at the position where it landed, the Pragyan rover rolled out of the lander hours after landing and started taking a walk on the lunar soil - being the first ever to tread on the South Pole ofthe Moon.

Why was Vikram lander put to sleep?

Vikram lander was put in sleep mode on September 4 so it could survive the harsh environment of the lunar night. On lunar night, which lasts for 14 days, the Moon is filled with immense darkness and freezing temperatures of nearly -200 degrees. It is quite unlikely for technical equipment to survive in such a harsh climate.

Pragyan rover is equipped with heaters, called radioisotope heater units (RHU), which work passively, radiating heat to keep the hardware onboard spacecraft at sustainable operating temperatures. These heaters are an essential part of space missions that convert heat generated from the natural decay of radioactive versions of plutonium or polonium into electrical power.

(With inputs from agencies)

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