How India Just Successfully Landed On The Moon

Last month on July 14th, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) launched its third lunar exploration mission. Named Chandrayaan-3, this mission featured a very similar goal and even hardware as the agency’s previous lunar mission, which crashed into the Moon. Thankfully, this time around, the lander managed to safely touchdown on the surface as planned.

Specifically, the lander touched down in the vicinity of the lunar South Pole region at 8:32 a.m. Eastern time, following a 19-minute descent from lunar orbit. This success means that India joins the United States, China, and the former Soviet Union in successfully soft landing on the moon. A significant milestone and especially impressive when considering the low budget of this mission.

Only days ago Russia’s Luna 25 lander crashed into the Moon after issues arose related to an engine burn. This helps put in perspective how difficult this achievement is and what it means for the future. Here I will go more in-depth into the successful landing, the journey from the Earth to the Moon, what’s next, and more.