Post its launch on July 14, Chandrayaan-3 entered into lunar orbit on August 5, following which two orbit reduction maneuvers were carried out on August 6 & 9.
Over five moves in the three weeks since the July 14 launch, ISRO had lifted the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft into orbits farther and farther away from the Earth.
India’s ambitious third Moon mission’s spacecraft Chandrayaan-3 on Monday underwent another maneuver, bringing it even closer to the Lunar surface, ISRO said. The national space agency headquartered here said the spacecraft has now achieved a “near-circular orbit” around the moon.
Post its launch on July 14, Chandrayaan-3 entered into the lunar orbit on August 5, following which two orbit reduction maneuvers were carried out on August 6 and 9.
“Orbit circularisation phase commences. Precise maneuver performed today has achieved a near-circular orbit of 150 km x 177 km,” ISRO said in a tweet.
The next operation is planned for August 16, around 8:30 am, it said. As the mission progresses, a series of maneuvers is being conducted by ISRO to gradually reduce Chandrayaan-3’s orbit and position it over the lunar poles.
According to ISRO sources, one more maneuver will be performed on the spacecraft on August 16 to reach 100 km orbit, following which the landing module, comprising the lander and rover will break away from the propulsion module.
Source : Hindustan News
