New Delhi
India’s Pragyan rover, which is on the Moon as part of the Chandrayaan-3 mission, encountered a massive 4-metre diametre crater on the lunar surface.
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said that the six-wheeled solar-powered rover found the crater about three metres from the edge on August 27 (Sunday) and was later directed to a safer path.
The update was shared on social media platform X.
Chandrayaan-3 Mission:
On August 27, 2023, the Rover came across a 4-meter diameter crater positioned 3 meters ahead of its location.
The Rover was commanded to retrace the path.
It's now safely heading on a new path.#Chandrayaan_3#Ch3 pic.twitter.com/QfOmqDYvSF
— ISRO (@isro) August 28, 2023
The rover has so far traversed around 8 metres on the lunar surface since the lander landed and will continue to study the Moon's geology and atmosphere at the unexplored southern pole.
It has a life span of only 14 Earth days, which is equivalent to one lunar day, and has 10 more days to go.
Chandrayaan-3 shares first observations about Moon's soil temperature
On August 23, India scripted history as the Chandrayaan-3 lander module successfully landed on the Moon’s south pole, becoming the first nation to achieve the historic feat.
Also read | Chandrayaan-3: World's eyes glued to the Moon to track and monitor India's lunar mission
Overall, India became the fourth country after the US, China, and the former Soviet Union to have successfully landed on the Moon’s surface.
Also read | Pakistan finally congratulates India for Chandrayaan-3 success, China still mum
After the successful landing of Chandrayaan-3 on the Moon's south pole on August 23, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday (August 26) announced that the landing point will be called "Shiv Shakti". He added that there was also a discussion over naming the point where Chandrayaan-2 crashed in 2019 and the point has been named "Tiranga".
The announcements were made when Prime Minister Modi was at the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) headquarters in Bengaluru, where he congratulated the scientists who contributed to the moon mission's success.
ISRO Chief S Somanath on Thursday said that exploring the Moon's south pole offered potential discoveries of water and much scientific data.
There has been much curiosity about the South Pole ever since Chandrayaan-1 recorded evidence of water on the Moon.
It is believed that water ice on the Moon is capable of providing fuel, oxygen, and drinking water for future missions, but its rough terrain makes landing challenging.
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