Rover moving on Moon, has already covered 8 metres, all payloads are performing: ISRO

The Chandrayaan-3 lander reached the lunar surface on Wednesday, making India the fourth country to achieve soft-landing on the Moon. India also became the first country to land near the South pole of the Moon.

Written by Anonna Dutt , Amitabh Sinha

New Delhi | Updated: August 26, 2023 01:40 AM IST

3 min read

Rollout of rover of ISRO's Chandrayaan-3 from the lander to the lunar surface, as observed by Lander Imager Camera, on Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2023. (PTI Photo)

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Two days after Chandrayaan-3 landed on the Moon, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) released Friday the first video of the rover moving on the lunar surface.

In an update later, the space agency confirmed that the rover had covered a distance of 8 metres on the lunar surface and the two science experiments it was carrying had also been switched on.

The rover is capable of travelling a total distance of 500 metres.

Watch | Video shows Chandrayaan-3 rover rolling onto Moon’s surface for the first time

A two-segment foldable ramp on the lander module helped the rover roll down with a cord attached to it. The cord was retracted after the rover touched the surface of the Moon.

A screenshot shows the surface of the Moon captured by Lander Imager Camera aboard ISRO’s Chandrayaan-3 before its successful touchdown, in Bengaluru, Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2023. (PTI Photo)

As it was rolling out, a solar panel also opened up, allowing the rover to generate 50W power for its journey.

“All planned rover movements have been verified. The rover has successfully traversed a distance of about eight metres,” ISRO said, adding that rover payloads LIBS (LASER Induced Breakdown Spectroscope) and APXS (Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectrometer) had been switched on.

The rover is capable of travelling a total distance of 500 metres. (PTI Photo)

“All payloads on the propulsion module, lander module and rover are performing nominally,” it said.

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Explained | As Chandrayaan-3 lands on the Moon, the history of ISRO’s remarkable space voyage

Data collected by the rover is sent to the lander, which then communicates with the orbiter of the previous Chandrayaan mission.

The Chandrayaan-2 orbiter then transmits the data to Earth. With this, all experiments have now been turned on to collect data during the lunar day.

The instruments will carry out experiments and observations over the next two weeks. They are expected to become inactive once the lunar night descends because of lack of sunlight.

Anonna Dutt

Anonna Dutt is a Principal Correspondent who writes primarily on health at the Indian Express. She reports on myriad topics ranging from the growing burden of non-communicable diseases such as diabetes and hypertension to the problems with pervasive infectious conditions. She reported on the government’s management of the Covid-19 pandemic and closely followed the vaccination programme. Her stories have resulted in the city government investing in high-end tests for the poor and acknowledging errors in their official reports. Dutt also takes a keen interest in the country’s space programme and has written on key missions like Chandrayaan 2 and 3, Aditya L1, and Gaganyaan. She was among the first batch of eleven media fellows with RBM Partnership to End Malaria. She was also selected to participate in the short-term programme on early childhood reporting at Columbia University’s Dart Centre. Dutt has a Bachelor’s Degree from the Symbiosis Institute of Media and Communication, Pune and a PG Diploma from the Asian College of Journalism, Chennai. She started her reporting career with the Hindustan Times. When not at work, she tries to appease the Duolingo owl with her French skills and sometimes takes to the dance floor. ... Read More

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