A Historic Milestone
India Successfully Lands Spacecraft on Moon's South Pole
Chandrayaan-3 successfully lands near Moon’s south pole, making it the first country to do so.
India has emerged as the first nation to successfully execute a spacecraft landing at the moon’s enigmatic south pole. The Chandrayaan-3 mission’s successful touchdown marks a pivotal moment in space history, positioning India as a prominent global power in space.
The moment of triumph arrived six weeks after Chandrayaan-3’s (the word for “moon craft” in Sanskrit) launch from a spaceport in Andhra Pradesh, India.
“We have achieved soft landing on the moon! India is on the moon!” ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation) chairman Sreedhara Somanath announced, immediately after the Vikram lander touched down.
While being the fourth country to achieve a moon landing, India sets itself apart by accomplishing a soft landing at the uncharted southern region of the lunar surface, thought to contain deep craters with water ice. Inside the lander is the six-wheeled Pragyaan rover, which will roam the lunar surface gathering crucial images and data to be sent back to Earth for analysis.
If successful, this mission could unravel the mysteries of the moon’s water resources and open up possibilities for future lunar exploration.
India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi claims “this success belongs to all of humanity and it will help moon missions by other countries in the future”.