CHANDRAYAAN 3 - SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
News: Chandrayaan-3
successfully completes crucial test
What's in the news?
● The
Chandrayaan-3 lander has successfully completed the crucial EMI-EMC (Electro - Magnetic Interference/ Electro -
Magnetic Compatibility) test at the U.R. Rao Satellite Centre in Bengaluru.
Key takeaways:
● According
to the space agency, the EMI-EMC test is conducted for satellite missions to ensure the functionality of the satellite
subsystems in the space environment and their compatibility with the
expected electromagnetic levels.
Chandrayaan-3:
● Chandrayaan-3
is India’s third moon mission and is
a follow-on mission to Chandrayaan-2 to demonstrate end-to-end capability in safe landing and roving on the lunar
surface (No orbiter).
Aim:
● The
mission aims to land a lander on the Lunar South
Pole.
Launch Vehicle:
● The
mission is slated to be launched later this year (August 2023) by Launch Vehicle Mark 3 (LMV3) from the
Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota.
Modules:
● Chandrayaan-3
interplanetary mission has three major modules such as
○ Propulsion
module
○ Lander
module and
○ Rover.
● The
mission’s complexity calls for establishing radio-frequency (RF) communication
links between the modules.
Lunar South Pole:
● The
lunar South Pole is one of the most compelling places in the entire Solar
System.
● The
towering massifs (mountains) of the South
Pole-Aitken Basin can be accessed, and these massifs contain impact melt
that will allow scientists to unambiguously determine the age of this huge
basin and could provide insights into planetary formation.
● Permanently shadowed
craters may harbour reservoirs of ices and other
volatile compounds that could serve as a tremendously valuable resource for
future explorers.
● Additionally,
these volatile deposits could
contain a priceless record of water
composition dating back to the beginning of our solar system, an
incomparable dataset for astrobiology investigations.
● A
few mountain peaks near the pole are
illuminated for extended periods of time, which could provide near-constant
solar power for a permanent lunar outpost sometime in the far future.
● In
addition, the South Pole region has craters that are cold traps and contain a fossil record of the early solar
system.
Significance:
● Chandrayaan
3, if successful, will make India the fourth
country to soft-land a spacecraft on the Moon after the United States, USSR
and China.