A Day in Astronomy: India Lands a Spacecraft on the Moon

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Image (Credit): Artist’s rendering of the Chandrayaan-3 lander named Vickram and rover names Pragyan on the lunar surface. (NASA)

On this day in 2023, India became the fourth nation to land a spacecraft on the Moon (following the Soviet Union, the U.S., and China). India’s Chandrayaan-3 probe landed at the lunar South Pole, the first spacecraft to land in that region. Chandrayaan-2 had crashed on the Moon’s surface back in 2019, whereas Chandrayaan-1 was a lunar orbiter in 2008.

The mission objectives for the Chandrayaan-3 included:

  • Testing the elemental composition of lunar soil.
  • Measuring the near surface plasma density and how it changes over time.
  • Measuring the thermal properties of the lunar surface near polar regions.
  • Measuring the seismic activity around the landing site to deduce the internal structure of the lunar crust and mantle.

As with the US space program, the boost to Indian pride following this successful mission was immeasurable. As one proud Indian noted:

The success of Chandrayaan-3 reverberated through classrooms and homes across India, with countless young eyes glued to screens, witnessing a historic moment. The mission’s success, though grand, is symbolic of more profound implications. With a burgeoning youth population, India stands on the precipice of a new era of innovation. The world’s largest youth demographic resides here, and Chandrayaan-3 has offered them more than just a scientific marvel; it has provided them with a vision of what’s achievable.

Space Quote: India Invited to the Moon

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“The 9th meeting of the India-U.S. Civil Space Joint Working Group (CSJWG) was hosted by India on 5-6 August 2026 at the headquarters of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in Bengaluru…NASA invited ISRO to join its Moon Base program, building on the two countries’ partnership under the Artemis Accords.  The two sides also agreed to advance discussions for cooperation on open scientific data sharing under the Accords.“

-Statement issued by the US Embassy in India on August 11, 2026 pertaining to NASA’s ongoing Moon Base program. India was the fourth nation to successfully land on the Moon back in 2023 with its Chandrayaan-3 mission. With that landing, it was also the first country to successfully land at the Moon’s South Pole.

Space Stories: NASA Probes the Northern Lights, India Announces New Telescopes, and Titan May Be a Moon Merger

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Image (Credit): The northern lights from October 2013 as captured by Astronaut Mike Hopkins aboard the International Space Station. (NASA)

Here are some recent space-related stories of interest.

—Space.com “NASA Launches Twin Rocket Missions from Alaska to Study Mysterious Black Auroras“

NASA launched two rockets from Alaska this week to learn more about the electrical “circuitry” within auroras, the colorful light shows that occur when solar wind collides with Earth’s atmosphere. The missions saw two suborbital sounding rockets launch from the Poker Flat Research Range near Fairbanks, Alaska loaded with scientific equipment that will fly into the atmosphere for a short period of time to gather data. The destination for the rockets in both missions was the northern lights, or aurora borealis.

—Physics World: “India Announces Three New Telescopes in the Himalayan Desert“

India has unveiled plans to build two new optical-infrared telescopes and a dedicated solar telescope in the Himalayan desert region of Ladakh. The three new facilities, expected to cost INR 35bn (about £284m), were announced by the Indian finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on 1 February.

—SETI Institute: “Saturn’s Moon Titan Could Have Formed in a Merger of Two Old Moons“

Recent research suggests that Saturn’s bright rings and its largest moon, Titan, may have both originated in collisions among its moons. While Cassini’s 13-year mission expanded our understanding of Saturn, the discoveries of its young rings and Titan’s rapidly shifting orbit raised new questions. Now, a study led by SETI Institute scientist Matija Ćuk proposes an explanation linking the formation of the moons and rings, centering on the possibility that Titan is the product of a moon merger.

The Successful Launch of the NISAR Satellite

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Image (Credit): The NISAR satellite and its casing. (ISRO)

Earlier today the NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) satellite was successfully launched from India’s Satish Dhawan Space Centre. ISRO stands for the Indian Space Research Organisation, which is India’s national space agency.

This first of its kind mission between NASA and India puts into orbit the NISAR satellite that can see the Earth in a new way, detecting the smallest of changes in the Earth’s surface from its 464 mile high orbit, including ground deformation, ice sheet movement, and vegetation dynamics. The addition list of satellite capabilities on the ISRO site include:

…sea ice classification, ship detection, shoreline monitoring, storm characterization, changes in soil moisture, mapping & monitoring of surface water resources and disaster response.

NASA’s Earth Science division director, Karen St. Germain, stated:

Observations from NISAR will provide new knowledge and tangible benefits for communities both in the U.S. and around the world…This launch marks the beginning of a new way of seeing the surface of our planet so that we can understand and foresee natural disasters and other changes in our Earth system that affect lives and property.

This will be useful information given that we run the risk of reverse-terraforming our Earth.

2024 Space Hightlights – Missions

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Image (Credit): An artist’s rendering of NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft over Europa. (NASA/JPL-Caltech)

Another list worth highlighting at year-end covers all of the space missions from 2024. For example, this list from Freethink, “the top 10 space stories of 2024,” includes the launch of the Europa Clipper, China’s Chang’e 6 round-trip to the Moon, and a successful commercial launch to the Moon (Odysseus lunar lander).

Here are some other lists of missions from 2024:

Note: The Awesome-Universe list of top missions looking back in 2024 include: