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Landing a super cool Chandrayaan-3 on Moon
Guess what? India totally aced it by landing a super cool Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft on the moon this Wednesday! And that’s not all – just a little while ago, a Russian vehicle had a little oopsie on the moon’s surface because its engines fired for too long. Yikes!
But let’s focus on the awesomeness from India. So, their lunar probe, which didn’t have any humans on board, safely touched down near the southern part of the moon at around 8:30 AM local time. This spot is like a hotspot for many countries because it’s got water ice hidden in these dark craters that never see sunlight.
Everyone in India, all billion-plus of them, threw a massive celebration because Chandrayaan-3 was a big deal. Back in 2019, they had a similar plan that went a bit haywire due to some software hiccups. But this time, they nailed it! This Chandrayaan -3 spacecraft has been cruising around the moon, mapping its terrain like a champ.
The big boss of India’s space gang, S. Somanath, proudly said, “India is on the moon,” while the country’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi watched with the Indian flag proudly waving on Chandrayaan-3 success.
And guess what? This isn’t a one-time thing. Japan is getting ready to launch its own lunar spacecraft soon to see if it can gracefully land on the moon, and that’s going to help them out later. Plus, later this year, a couple of private American companies are teaming up with NASA to send their own robots to the moon. NASA, by the way, wants to put humans back on the moon, and this time, they’re planning to stay a while and make the most of what the moon has to offer.
Modi, the head honcho of India, is all about boosting his country’s space game. Experts are saying this is also helping India’s economy and tech scene. They’ve even tried to work together with China, which also loves space stuff and has already landed on the moon. In 2019, India was like, “Check this out!” and shot down a satellite, proving they’ve got space skills.
Here’s a cool twist: India and the United States are partnering up for space adventures. They signed something called the Artemis Accords, which is like a set of space rules for everyone to follow. Around 30 countries are on board with this, which means they’re ready to buddy up with the U.S. in space missions and share what they find. Oh, and they’re creating a “safety zone” on the moon so everyone can work without stepping on each other’s toes.
Remember when India tried landing in 2019 and things didn’t quite pan out? Well, Modi wasn’t having any of that “we can’t do it” talk. He said they were getting back on that horse, and now look where they are! “Touch the moon? Challenge accepted!”
America is also in the space game, racing China to send astronauts back to the moon by 2030. NASA’s been aiming for 2025, but they might need a little more time, possibly until 2026, to get everything just right. There’s talk about a trip around the moon without landing, but the details are a bit hush-hush.
And guess what? NASA is still gunning for a moon trip with four astronauts by late 2024. It’s called Artemis II, and it’s the sequel to their successful moon flyby last year.
But hold up, did you know that there’s water near the moon’s south pole? That’s got scientists and space buffs all excited because it could mean big things for us Earthlings if we want to hang out on the moon someday. Water means life, after all. And the cool part? The stuff in water – hydrogen and oxygen – can also be turned into rocket fuel. Talk about making lemonade out of moon rocks!
India’s space squad, known as ISRO, did some homework before sending their spacecraft. They made sure everything was solid, launched it in July, and got it to the moon without a hitch. They even tweeted about it, saying everything was going according to plan.
Oh, and one more thing – India’s planning to put a rover on the moon to check out the soil and rocks. It’s like a lunar field trip that’ll last around 14 days. How awesome is that?