India's 'Chandrayaan 3' to Attempt Landing on Moon's South Pole Tomorrow

Will It Earn the Title of 'First Country to Land on the Lunar South Pole'?
Russia, USA, China, and Others Compete in Lunar South Pole Exploration Race

India's unmanned lunar probe 'Chandrayaan 3' will attempt to land on the Moon's south pole on the 23rd. Attention is focused on whether India can claim the title of 'the first human landing on the Moon's south pole.'

According to foreign media such as Reuters and India's Times of India on the 22nd, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is preparing for Chandrayaan 3's landing on the Moon's south pole the next day.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Chandrayaan 3, which means 'Moon vehicle' in Sanskrit, was launched on the 14th of last month and is currently reported to be stably entering lunar orbit. If it successfully lands on the Moon's south pole, it will conduct exploration activities and scientific experiments for two weeks.

Sridharan Somanath, ISRO Director, expressed confidence, saying, "Everything has gone smoothly so far, and there have been no unexpected situations," adding, "We have completed all preparations and are ready for landing through multiple simulations and system verifications."

On the 21st, ISRO also released surface photos of the Moon's south pole taken by the lander 'Vikram,' which is orbiting the Moon as part of Chandrayaan 3.

Previously, India launched Chandrayaan 2 in 2020, but the mission failed as the lander crashed and was destroyed.

If Chandrayaan 3 successfully lands on the Moon this time, India will become the fourth country in the world to achieve a lunar landing, following the United States, Russia, and China. It will also be the first country to land on the Moon's south pole.

The Moon's south pole is known to have a high possibility of containing ice water. If a large amount of water exists on the lunar surface as predicted, it will be possible to locally source drinking water, oxygen, and hydrogen that can be used as rocket fuel.

In this case, building a base at the south pole would enable long-term stays for astronauts and could serve as a foundation for continuous space exploration, such as Mars missions.

Accordingly, countries around the world are currently competing to land on the Moon's south pole.

Russia launched Luna 25 and re-entered lunar exploration after 47 years but ultimately failed, as reported on the 20th. The United States is preparing to land astronauts on the Moon's south pole through the manned lunar exploration project 'Artemis' planned for 2025. China also plans to launch Chang'e 6 and 7 in 2024 to explore the Moon's south pole.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.