Chandrayaan-3: Importance & Challenges

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is targeting the launch of its third lunar mission, Chandrayaan-3, in August 2022.The space agency planned for a third lunar mission after its lander rover failed to soft-land on the surface of the moon in 2019.

Features

• It will carry only a modified lander and rover and will use the orbiter of the Chandrayaan 2 mission to communicate with the earth.
• It is aiming for the same landing site in the moon's south polar region that Vikram lander targeted in 2019.

India’s Previous Chandrayaan Lunar Exploration Missions

• Chandrayaan 1: India’s first lunar exploration mission Chandrayaan 1 was launched in October 2008 and successfully performed chemical, mineralogical and photo-geologic mapping of the moon. It orbited 100km above the lunar surface and carried 11 payloads to perform its mission.The mission made India the fourth country to send a probe to the lunar surface after the United States, the Soviet Union, and Japan.
• It discovered the presence of water molecules in lunar soil and the presence of ice at the Polar region. This is considered to be one of the biggest space discoveries till date. The mission also detected past tectonic activity on the lunar surface.
• Chandrayaan 2: India’s second lunar exploration mission, Chandrayaan 2, aimed to explore the South Pole, anticipating that chances of water presence could be higher in that area. The lander used for the Chandrayaan 2 mission, Vikram crashed on the moon.The instruments onboard the Orbiter is continuously providing useful science data which will enrich India’s understanding of the moon’s evolution and mapping of the minerals and water molecules in the Polar region.

Importance of Chandrayaan-3

• Study of Moon: It will further improve understanding about origin of moon, which will also enhance the understanding of Earth’s origin and its neighbourhood.
• Improve International Standing of India: A successful landing will make India the fourth country after US, Russia and China to soft land on the moon. It will improve the reputation of India’s space programs and reinforce the capabilities of ISRO as a reliable space agency.
• Resolve Mystery of Lunar South Pole: India will be the first country to launch a mission to the lunar south pole. The Lunar south pole is especially interesting because:
  • Lunar surface area that remains in shadow is much larger than that at the north pole, creating a possibility of presence of water in permanently shadowed areas around it.
  • Presence of craters that are cold traps and contain a fossil record of the early Solar System.
• Future Missions: The success of the mission will aid in successful completion of future missions of ISRO like sending a manned mission to the moon under its Gaganyaan program.

Challenges

• Nascent Stage of India’s Space Economy: At present, India accounts for only about 2 per cent of the space economy, much behind the major players – USA and China.
  • India’s expenditure on Research and Development (R&D) activities is low, which was 0.7 per cent of its GDP in 2020.
• COVID Pandemic: The mission was to initially take place in 2020; however, the coronavirus pandemic and impending lockdowns resulted in delay of launch of the mission. At present it is in the matured stage of realisation.
• Operational Challenge: Landing on the surface of any celestial body is about reduction of speed of spacecraft for a soft landing with a perfect touchdown without any damage or without any hazard on the landing site. It is a major operational challenge as Chandrayan 2’s lander Vikram also hard landed on the moon’s surface.
• Structure and Composition of Moon: Moon does not have sufficient gravity and has no atmosphere, this makes soft landing difficult.
• Mission Management: Propellant management at various stages, engine burns, orbit and trajectory design is a challenge in successful completion of the mission.

This mission can help to build room for future space missions of India and cement India’s position as a 21st-century space power.