Memories of Chandrayaan 2 are still alive in our minds. We still remember that night of 6 September 2019 when Indians all over the world have been waiting for the successful lending of the Vikram lander but what happened was completely unexpected. Upon landing the Vikram lander crashed and the contact was lost. This not only made the team of the Chandrayaan 2 disheartened but also filled our hearts with sadness. If the mission would have been successful we all know that India would have been the 4th country to safely land on the moon.
After the last minute failure of the Chandrayaan two Indian Space Research Organization has planned the third lunar exploration mission. The mission will be same the as Chandrayaan 2. This will include a lander and a rover similarly to the Chandrayaan 2 but this time there will be no orbiter. ISRO is planning to launch Chandrayaan 3 mission somewhere in 2022.
After Chandrayaan 2 Chandrayaan three is all set for the journey to the moon.
Last year Union Minister Jitendra Singh Said that Chandrayaan 3 will get launched somewhere in 2021.
“The tentative launch schedule of the Chandrayaan 3 is the first half of 2021. Chandrayaan 3 mission has been configured based on the lesson learned from Chandrayaan 2, ISRO is currently working on the Chandrayaan 3 project simultaneously with India’s first manned lunar mission – Gaganyaan. ”
Said Union Minister Jitendra Singh in response to a question that was raised in Lok Sabha.
Talking about the design of the Chandrayaan 3. the mission comprises of 4 throttleable engines unlike the Chandrayaan 2. For the Chandrayaan 2, five 800 Newtons engines were used, for this mission, there was another engine that was mounted in the center, which was fixed with the trust. This time Chandrayaan 3 will have a Laser Doppler Velocimeter.
Reports also suggest that ISRO has collaborated with Japan on this mission to the lunar south pole. India is providing the lander whereas the rover and launcher will arrive from Japan. This mission too includes site sampling along with night survival technologies.
Back in 2019, ISRO has requested around Rs. 75 Crore out of which 60 crores will be used for machinery and equipment. The remaining amount will be sought under the revenue expenditure head. K. Sivan stated that the estimated cost on Chandrayaan 3 will be around Indian Rupees 615 crore.
In the latest’s reports that came from ISRO chief K. Shivan said that the Chandrayaan mission three is further pushed to 2022 and may not be launched this year as said earlier. This is mainly because of the Coronavirus pandemic and the frequent lockdowns due to which numerous ISRO missions are badly hit. Delaying several important missions that include Chandrayaan and Gaganyaan. Which is India’s first manned space mission.
K. Sivan in a statement said that
“We are working on it. It is the same configuration as Chandrayaan 2 but it will not have an orbiter. The orbiter launched during Chandrayaan 2 will be used for Chandrayaan 3. With that, we are working on a system and mostly the launch will be next year in 2022.
Chandrayaan 3 is a critical mission of ISRO for testing the capabilities of India to make landings for further interplanetary missions. Another unmanned mission and along with the third leg module will follow the Chandrayaan 3 mission.
So to end it here we can say that there are no plans and confirmation that came from ISRO regarding the Chandrayaan 3. ISRO may launch the Chandrayaan mission somewhere in 2022. What we can do is wait for ISRO’s confirmation on the upcoming missions.
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