Chandrayaan-3

Coordinates: 69°22′23″S 32°19′08″E / 69.373°S 32.319°E / -69.373; 32.319
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Chandrayaan-3
Chandrayaan-3 Integrated Module
Mission type
OperatorISRO
COSPAR ID2023-098A Edit this at Wikidata
SATCAT no.57320
WebsiteOfficial website
Mission duration9 months and 13 days (elapsed) (PM)
  • Propulsion module: ≤ 3 to 6 months (planned) 8 months and 22 days (elapsed) (since orbit insertion)
  • Vikram lander: ≤ 14 days (planned)
    12 days (final) (since landing)
  • Pragyan rover: ≤ 14 days (planned)
    12 days (final) (since deployment)
Spacecraft properties
BusChandrayaan
ManufacturerISRO
Launch mass3900 kg (8600 lb)[1]
Payload massPropulsion Module: 2148 kg (4736 lb)
Lander Module (Vikram): 1726 kg (3806 lb)
Rover (Pragyan) 26 kg (57 lb)
Total: 3900 kg (8600 lb)
PowerPropulsion Module: 758 W
Lander Module: 738 W (WS with Bias)
Rover: 50 W
Start of mission
Launch date14 July 2023 (2023-07-14), 14:35:17 IST (09:05:17 UTC)[2]
RocketLVM3 M4
Launch siteSatish Dhawan Space Centre
ContractorISRO
Moon orbiter
Orbital insertion5 August 2023
Orbital parameters
UTC)[3]
Return launch3 September 2023 (2023-09-03)[3]
Landing siteStatio Shiv Shakti (Shiv Shakti Point)[4] 69°22′23″S 32°19′08″E / 69.373°S 32.319°E / -69.373; 32.319[5]
(between Manzinus C and Simpelius N craters)[6]
Moon rover
Landing date23 August 2023
Distance driven101.4 m (333 ft)[7]
Moon lander
Spacecraft componentVikram lander
Landing date3 September 2023 (2023-09-03)[3]
Landing site40 cm (16 in) away from Statio Shiv Shakti (Shiv Shakti Point)[8]
(between Manzinus C and Simpelius N craters)[9]
Flyby of Moon
Spacecraft componentPropulsion module
Closest approach7 November 2023

Mission insignia  

Chandrayaan-3 (/ˌʌndrəˈjɑːn/ CHUN-drə-YAHN) is the third mission in the Chandrayaan programme, a series of lunar-exploration missions developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).[10] The mission consists of a Vikram lunar lander and a Pragyan lunar rover similar to those launched aboard Chandrayaan-2 in 2019, as well as a propulsion module that carried the spacecraft from Earth orbit to lunar orbit.

Chandrayaan-3 was launched from

IST (12:33 UTC), making India the fourth country to successfully land on the Moon, and at 69°S, the southernmost lunar landing, until IM-1 landed further southwards in Malapert A crater on 22 February 2024.[12][note 1] The lander was not built to withstand the cold temperatures of the lunar night, and sunset over the landing site ended the surface mission twelve days after landing.[16][17] The propulsion module, still operational, transited back to a high Earth orbit from lunar orbit on 22 November 2023 for continued scientific observations of Earth.[18]

History