PM Modi announces August 23 as ‘National Space Day’
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday announced August 23 as the ‘National Space Day’. Chandrayaan-3 made a successful soft landing on the south pole of the Moon on August 23.
The prime minister was addressing the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) scientists at the ISRO command centre in Bengaluru.
Modi met and congratulated ISRO scientists on Saturday as he lauded Chandryaan-3 heroes involved with the successful lunar landing. In Bengaluru, the PM interacted with ISRO scientists at the Isro Telemetry Tracking and Command Network Mission Control Complex (ISTRAC).
Hailing the efforts of the woman scientists for the successful space mission and the landing of Chandrayaan-3 on the moon, PM Modi further announced that the point on the moon where Chandrayaan-3 landed will be called ‘Shivshakti’.
“Women scientists played a key role in Chandrayaan 3…this ‘Shivkshakti’ point will inspire the upcoming generations to use science for the welfare of people. The welfare of people is our supreme commitment..”, PM Modi said.
He also announced that the point where its predecessor, Chandrayaan-2 hit, will be known as the ‘Tiranga’ point.
“In today’s era, the country which paces ahead in the field of science and technology will be charting history…To encourage our younger generation to get involved in the field of science and technology and space, we have decided that August 23, the day when our Chandrayaan-3 lander touched the moon, will be celebrated as National Space Day,” PM Modi said.
“We have our national pride placed on the Moon. This feat is unprecedented! This is today’s India, the BOLD AND BRAVE India!,” Modi said in his address.
He said the scientists had taken the Make In India initiative to the Moon, referring to the boost to indigenous productions due to Chandrayaan 3’s success.
The PM early Saturday landed in Bengaluru. While Modi could not physically be present for the Chandrayaan-3 landing, he attended the landing event virtually and congratulated ISRO chairman S Somanath and his team for successfully landing on the lunar south pole region, making India the first country to achieve this feat.
A follow-up mission to the 2019 Chandrayaan-2, the latest moon programme aims to achieve three objectives– to demonstrate a safe and soft landing on the moon surface, which could not be achieved during Chandrayaan-2, to demonstrate rover roving abilities on the moon surface, and to conduct in-situ scientific experiments.
On Wednesday (August 23) at 6.04pm, ISRO’s Chandrayaan-3 made a successful landing and for the next fortnight, a series of experiments will be undertaken on the lunar surface by the craft’s lander (Vikram) and rover (Pragyan).
On Friday, the Pragyan rover rolled out over the surface of the Moon and covered a distance of 8 metres, according to ISRO.
In the second lunar mission, the soft-landing attempt by the Indian space agency might have failed, but ISRO managed to successfully place its orbiter in the path, which continues to provide key information.
The historic achievement by ISRO placed India among the top four nations to carry out a soft landing on the lunar surface, and the first nation to reach the Moon’s unexplored south pole.