ISRO is yet to hear from the Vikram lander and Pragyan rover of the Chandrayaan-2 mission, which landed on the Moon in September 2019. However, there is still time for the spacecraft to wake up, as the Moon is currently in its lunar night, which means that there is no sunlight to power the spacecraft’s solar panels.
ISRO has said that it will continue to try to establish contact with Vikram and Pragyan until the end of September 2023, when the Moon will enter its lunar day again and the spacecraft will be able to receive sunlight.
If ISRO is unable to establish contact with Vikram and Pragyan by the end of September 2023, the spacecraft will likely be lost. However, there is still a chance that the spacecraft could wake up before then.
In the meantime, ISRO is preparing for the launch of the Chandrayaan-3 mission, which is scheduled to launch in August 2023. Chandrayaan-3 will be a follow-up to the Chandrayaan-2 mission, and it will attempt to land a lander and rover on the Moon.
The Chandrayaan-3 mission is an ambitious one, but it has the potential to make significant advances in our understanding of the Moon. ISRO is one of the leading space agencies in the world, and it has a long track record of success. I am confident that ISRO will be able to overcome the challenges it faces and achieve its goals with the Chandrayaan-3 mission
“BENGALURU: Isro, which had kept ‘some circuits’ alive for its ground stations to hear from the Moon in the event of Chandrayaan-3 lander and rover — Vikram and Pragyan — awake again, is yet to hear anything as of Friday evening.”
Chandrayaan-3: Isro’s Moon mission still holding on to hope
ISRO is still holding on to hope for its Chandrayaan-3 mission, even though it has not yet heard from the Vikram lander and Pragyan rover of the Chandrayaan-2 mission, which landed on the Moon in September 2019.
ISRO has kept “some circuits” alive in its ground stations so that it can hear from Vikram and Pragyan if they wake up again. However, as of Friday evening, ISRO has not yet heard anything from the two spacecraft.
The Moon is currently in its lunar night, which means that there is no sunlight to power the spacecraft’s solar panels. However, ISRO will continue to try to establish contact with Vikram and Pragyan until the end of September 2023, when the Moon will enter its lunar day again and the spacecraft will be able to receive sunlight.
If ISRO is unable to establish contact with Vikram and Pragyan by the end of September 2023, the spacecraft will likely be lost. However, there is still a chance that the spacecraft could wake up before then.
In the meantime, ISRO is preparing for the launch of the Chandrayaan-3 mission, which is scheduled to launch in August 2023. Chandrayaan-3 will be a follow-up to the Chandrayaan-2 mission, and it will attempt to land a lander and rover on the Moon.
The Chandrayaan-3 mission is a complex and ambitious one, but it has the potential to make significant advances in our understanding of the Moon. ISRO is a world-renowned space agency with a long track record of success. I am confident that ISRO will be able to overcome the challenges it faces and achieve its goals with the Chandrayaan-3 mission.
Chandrayaan-2: A sleeping beauty waiting to wake up
Like a sleeping beauty waiting to be awakened, the Vikram lander and Pragyan rover of the Chandrayaan-2 mission lie dormant on the Moon. ISRO, the Indian space agency, has kept “some circuits” alive in its ground stations, so that it can hear from the two spacecraft if they wake up again.
The Moon is currently in its lunar night, which means that there is no sunlight to power the spacecraft’s solar panels. However, ISRO will continue to try to establish contact with Vikram and Pragyan until the end of September 2023, when the Moon will enter its lunar day again and the spacecraft will be able to receive sunlight.
If ISRO is unable to establish contact with Vikram and Pragyan by the end of September 2023, the spacecraft will likely be lost. However, there is still a chance that the spacecraft could wake up before then.
What would happen if Vikram and Pragyan did wake up? It would be a miracle, of course. But it would also be a major scientific breakthrough. The two spacecraft could provide ISRO with valuable data about the Moon, and they could help to pave the way for future human exploration of the Moon.
So, let’s all keep our fingers crossed and hope that Vikram and Pragyan do wake up. It would be a truly magical moment.
This is aside from getting the right Sun elevation angle of 6° to 9°. Whether the two get a second life on Moon or not, the Chandrayaan-3 mission is successful with all mission objectives having been met during its mission life.
The stated objectives of the mission was: demonstrating safe and soft landing, rover roving and conducting in-situ scientific experiments.