Ahead of the second phase of the Chandrayaan-3 lunar mission, former Indian Space Research Organisation ISRO chief K Sivan expressed optimism and said that the success of the wakeup call regarding the Vikram lander and Pragyan rover is something which “we have to wait and see”.
Published Date – 03:21 PM, Fri – 22 September 23
Vadodara: Ahead of the second phase of the Chandrayaan-3 lunar mission, former Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chief K Sivan expressed optimism and said that the success of the wakeup call regarding the Vikram lander and Pragyan rover is something which “we have to wait and see”.
Speaking to ANI on the second phase of the Chandrayaan-3 lunar mission, the Ex-ISRO chief said, “The success of the wake-up call is something we will have to wait and see. Now the lunar day starts soon, so they will try to wake up soon. All the systems are functioning, it will be alright.”
“It all depends on the system, there are mechanical systems, solar panels, batteries all these do not have a problem. However, the minute electric components like transmitters and receivers, whether they survive the cold temperature that we will have to see. If they survive, then definitely we will be able to wake them up,” Sivan added.
The former ISRO Chief further added, “This is not the end, a lot more new sciences will come. The Chandrayaan 1 data brought a lot of discoveries, so I hope that a lot of new things will come. Scientists will keep on trying, and new findings will come.” Earlier, Union Minister of State Jitendra Singh informed that the second phase of the Chandrayaan-3 lunar mission is about to begin in the next few hours adding that Pragyan Rover and Vikram lander are awaiting and will wake after facing sunrays. Addressing Lok Sabha on Day 4 of the Parliament Special session, Jitendra Singh said, “After a few hours when Moon will face the Sun, our Vikram Lander and Pragyan Rover will wake up. We have arranged solar batteries and panels have been set in such a direction that when Vikram faces sunrays a communication circuit will get activated. Both Vikram and Pragyan are awaiting a wake-up call.” After a 40-day journey into space, the Chandrayaan-3 lander, ‘Vikram’, touched down on August 23 at the uncharted lunar South Pole making India the first country to do so. After transversing over 100 meters on the lunar surface from the Shiv Shakti Point, the touchdown spot of the Vikram lander on the lunar surface, the Pragyan Rover was safely parked and set into sleep mode on September 2.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh termed Chandrayaan-3 as a huge achievement for the entire nation and stated that there are many developed countries that, despite being more resource-rich, are trying to reach the Moon, while India has become the first country to reach the South Pole of the Moon with limited resources.
He credited the success to the intellectual prowess and dedication of ISRO scientists towards the development of the nation. India is today among the leading nations in the field of science due to their relentless efforts, said the release.
India also became only the fourth nation after the US, Russia and China to successfully conduct a lunar landing mission. The Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft put down the Vikram lander on the lunar surface, tilting to a horizontal position ahead of landing. The spacecraft was launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Andhra Pradesh’s Sriharikota on July 14.
