The day Chandrayaan-3 landed on the moon on August 23 was the first of 14 Earth days of sunlight on the moon and night will fall over the moon on September 6 when the batteries of the Lander and Rover will not be charged for 14 (Earth) days
Chandrayaan-3’s Pragyan rover was on Saturday set into “sleep mode” after completing its assignments on the lunar surface, 10 days after India scripted history by becoming the first nation to soft-land on the south polar region of the Moon, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said.
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The day Chandrayaan-3 landed on the moon on August 23 was the first of 14 Earth days of sunlight on the moon and night will fall over the moon on September 6 when the batteries of the Lander and Rover will not be charged for 14 (Earth) days as temperatures fall to the region of below 100 degree Celsius on the surface of the moon.
Although the nominal life of the mission is 14 days, the mission could see an extended lease of life if the batteries of the Rover and Lander revive when the sun rises again on the moon.
“The Rover completed its assignments. It is now safely parked and set into Sleep mode. APXS and LIBS payloads are turned off. Data from these payloads is transmitted to the Earth via the Lander,” the space agency informed via X (formerly Twitter).
It added: “Currently, the battery is fully charged. The solar panel is oriented to receive the light at the next sunrise expected on September 22, 2023. The receiver is kept on. Hoping for a successful awakening for another set of assignments! Else, it will forever stay there as India’s lunar ambassador.”
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First published on: 02-09-2023 at 22:13 IST
