Chandrayaan-3’s next lunar orbital manoeuvre today. Details here

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said Chandrayaan-3, India’s third lunar mission is getting closer to the Moon and it will perform another important manoeuvre on Monday between 11:30 am to 12:30 am.

“Even closer to the moon’s surface. Chandrayaan-3’s orbit is reduced to 174 km x 1437 km following a manuevre performed today. The next operation is scheduled for August 14, 2023, between 11:30 and 12:30 Hrs. IST,” the ISRO posted on X (formerly Twitter) on August 9.

Once the necessary manoeuvres are completed, a precise landing spot near the “Moon’s south pole” will be chosen. Afterward, the propulsion module will detach from the lander while it’s in orbit and the lander will descend from orbit and make an attempt to land softly.

What is the current position? When will it land on Moon?

Chandrayaan-3 is expected to touch down on the Moon on August 23 after travelling for 40 days. Chandrayaan-3 has moved even nearer to the Moon’s surface with the spacecraft’s path has been adjusted to 174 km x 1437 km following a maneuver carried out on August 9.

Timeline of Chandrayaan-3 mission

July 6: ISRO declared that Mission Chandrayaan-3 would launch on July 14 from Sriharikota’s second launch pad.

July 7: Vehicle electrical tests were completed successfully.

July 11: A 24-hour ‘Launch Rehearsal’ was done, simulating the entire launch process.

July 14: LVM3 M4 vehicle triumphantly launched Chandrayaan-3 into its intended orbit.

July 15: The first orbit-raising manoeuvre, Earthbound firing-1, succeeded in Bengaluru. The spacecraft reached an orbit of 41762 km x 173 km.

July 17: The second orbit-raising manoeuvre put Chandrayaan-3 in an orbit of 41603 km x 226 km.

July 22: The fourth orbit-raising manoeuvre, Earth-bound perigee firing, successfully placed the spacecraft in a 71351 km x 233 km orbit.

July 25: Another orbit-raising manoeuvre was carried out successfully.

August 1: Chandrayaan-3 achieved a significant milestone by entering the translunar orbit, with an orbit of 288 km x 369328 km.

August 5: The spacecraft achieved a major success by entering the lunar orbit at 164 km x 18074 km.

August 6: The spacecraft’s orbit was lowered to 170 km x 4,313 km around the Moon.

August 9: Chandrayaan-3 moved closer to Moon with another manoeuver performed lowering it to 174 km x 1437 km.