WASHINGTON — The spacecraft that carried the Chandrayaan-3 lander to the moon has returned to Earth orbit, demonstrating technology that will support future Indian lunar sample return missions.
Indian space agency ISRO announced on December 4 that the propulsion module of the Chandrayaan-3 mission is now in high Earth orbit after a series of operations that brought the spacecraft back from low lunar orbit since October. did. Until now, ISRO had not disclosed any efforts to return the propulsion module to Earth orbit.
The 2,145-kilogram propulsion module’s primary purpose was to transport the Chandrayaan-3 lander from its initial elliptical Earth orbit to low lunar orbit. The module, a modified version of ISRO’s I-3K satellite bus, will carry out several maneuvers to raise the apogee of its orbit starting the day after its launch on July 14, followed by menstrual ejection burn and lunar orbit insertion. Burning was carried out. The module then moved into a nearly circular orbit about 150 kilometers above the moon before the lander separated on August 17.
The lander successfully landed on the moon on August 23rd. The propulsion module remained in orbit and operated a single instrument called the Spectroscopic Polarimeter for Earth Observations (SHAPE). ISRO provided little information about the propulsion module after the lander separation.
in statement, ISRO has determined that the precision of the launch and initial maneuvers left more than 100 kg of propellant in the spacecraft and has decided to attempt to return the propulsion module to Earth orbit. The first maneuver in the project took place on October 9, raising Apollo, the highest point in orbit around the Moon, from 150 kilometers to 5,112 kilometers.
The module performed a trans-Earth injection maneuver on October 13th, placing it in orbit for four close approaches to the Moon before leaving the sphere of influence on November 10th. The spacecraft entered high orbit around the Earth and passed its first perigee. November 22nd, altitude 154,000 km.
ISRO said this maneuver enabled SHAPE to continue observing closer to Earth. However, it added that the maneuver was designed to “deduce additional information for future lunar exploration missions and demonstrate mission operations strategies for sample return missions.”
ISRO has not officially announced any plans for a lunar sample return mission. The next mission to the moon is the Lunar Polar Exploration Mission (LUPEX), a joint project with the Japanese space agency JAXA. The mission, also known as Chandrayaan-4, will carry a Japanese probe aboard an Indian lander and explore the moon’s south pole region. It is expected to be launched by 2026 at the earliest.
However, ISRO officials are discussing the possibility of a short-term sample return mission. “The Indian government has given us a very tight schedule when it comes to space exploration. We need to bring back samples from the moon within about four years,” he said at the AIAA meeting in Las Vegas on Oct. 24. Shri M. Sankaran, Director, UR Rao Satellite Center, ISRO, said during a panel discussion at the ASCEND conference.
He appeared to be referring to the ISRO leadership meeting on October 17, which will be chaired by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. release The Prime Minister’s Office mentioned goals including building an Indian space station by 2035 and landing an Indian man on the moon by 2040, but did not mention returning lunar samples.
In a subsequent conference presentation, he said ISRO had developed a concept for a sample return mission, but did not go into details. “Perhaps this sample return and the LUPEX mission with JAXA may occur more or less simultaneously,” he said.
The return of the propulsion module to Earth orbit was not the first demonstration of the technology required for Chandrayaan-3’s lunar sample return. On the final day of its lunar mission in September, the lander reignited its engines, rose about 40 centimeters above the lunar surface, and landed 30 to 40 centimeters from its original landing site. “This ‘kickstart’ will enthuse future sample returns and humanity’s mission!” Isro Posted on social media.