'Meanwhile, Over The Moon...': Posts ISRO As Pragyan Rover Travels 100 Metres on Lunar Surface

While the Indian Space Research Organisation successfully launched it’s first solar mission, Aditya L1 from the Sriharikota spaceport, it posted on X that Chandrayaan-3’s Pragyan Rover on the other hand has traversed over 100 meters on the moon.

ISRO posted on X, “Pragyan 100*..Meanwhile, over the Moon, Pragyan Rover has traversed over 100 meters and continuing.”

ISRO chief S Somanath said that the process of putting the rover and lander into “sleep” will start within a day or two.

The mission — landed on the moon on August 23 — is set to conclude in the next seven days.

This comes as ISRO said that two or the three missions of the Chandrayaan-3 were achieved. The first 2 missions — demonstration of a safe and soft landing on the lunar surface, and demonstration of rover movement on the moon — have been successful.

While the third mission, which is the in-situ scientific experiments on the moon are currently underway.

The mission made India the fourth country to accomplish a landing on the lunar surface, and the first to reach the unexplored south pole of the moon.

The mission is set to end soon due to the phenomenon of ‘lunar night.”

This is essentially a period in which moon’s surface is not exposed to the sun, making it impossible for the Pragyan rover — which is solar powered — to continue its work.

This period will last for one lunar day, or 14 Earth days.

India on August 23 scripted history as ISRO’s ambitious third Moon mission Chandrayaan-3’s Lander Module (LM) touched down on the lunar surface.

Following the success of India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his address to the ISRO scientists at the space agency’s headquarters in Bengaluru has named the landing point of the Vikram Lander as ‘Shivshakti’.

“The spot on the lunar surface where the Chandrayaan-2 left its footprints will be known as ‘Tiranga’. This will be an inspiration for every effort made by India. it will remind us any failure is not final,” he added.