Chandrayaan-3: ISRO says landing on schedule, releases new images

The Chandrayaan-3 mission is on schedule for a soft-landing on the Moon on Wednesday, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said.

The lander module, comprising the lander Vikram and rover Pragyan, is set for a 6.04 pm touchdown on the Moon.

“The mission is on schedule. Systems are undergoing regular checks. Smooth sailing is continuing. The Mission Operations Complex (MOX) is buzzed with energy & excitement!” ISRO said.

Chandrayaan-3 was launched on July 14, on Launch Vehicle Mark-3, from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.

The space agency on Tuesday also released images (from August 19) of the Moon captured by the Lander Position Detection Camera (LPDC), from an altitude of about 70 km. The LPDC images assist the lander module in determining its position (latitude and longitude) by matching them against an on-board moon reference map.

Images of craters, maria

The latest images released by Isro identify lunar craters Goddard, Ibn Yunus, Jansky, Hirayama and Brunner, and two lunar maria (basaltic plains that were formed after large impacts) – Mare Marginis and Mare Smythii.

The live telecast of the landing operations at MOX/ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC) here will commence at 5.20 pm.

On Monday, ISRO Chairman S Somanath briefed Minister of State, Space, Jitendra Singh, on the mission’s progress. He said all systems were working "perfectly" and no contingencies were anticipated on the day of the landing.

ISRO has also successfully established two-way communication between the Chandrayaan-3 lander module and the still-orbiting Chandrayaan-2 orbiter.