A soft landing is a thorough lunar landing process that allows the spacecraft to undertake a controlled fall, prioritizing safety and culminating in a slow and smooth touchdown. As a strategic countermeasure to the Moon’s gravitational force, the lander deploys reverse thrust. The use of reverse thrust strategically minimizes the descent speed, resulting in a smooth and controlled landing.
The spacecraft configuration for the Chandrayaan 3 mission includes an indigenous Lander module (LM), a Propulsion module (PM), and a Rover. The Lander module will be capable of landing gently at a predetermined lunar location, i.e., the South Pole of the moon. Following that, it will launch the Rover, which will conduct on-site chemical assessments of the lunar terrain as it moves around.
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How Many Countries Have Successful Soft-Landing on the Moon?
As of August 2023, the exclusive distinction of achieving this remarkable feat rests with merely four nations: India, Russia, the United States of America, and China. Upon Chandrayaan-3’s successful touchdown, India ascended to the ranks as the fourth country to accomplish a soft lunar landing. By doing so, India has also created history by becoming the one and only country to land at the south pole of the Moon. This achievement will also herald India as the pioneering nation, being the very first to achieve a landing on the lunar south pole and a very low budget.
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1. India
India on Wednesday, 23 August 2023 became the fourth country in the world to achieve a soft -landing on the moon. This came after 2 previous unsuccessful lunar missions. This also mean that India is the only country in the world to land on the Lunar South pole.
Chandrayaan-3 Mission:’India🇮🇳,I reached my destinationand you too!’: Chandrayaan-3
Chandrayaan-3 has successfullysoft-landed on the moon 🌖!.
Congratulations, India🇮🇳!#Chandrayaan_3#Ch3
— ISRO (@isro)
August 23, 2023
2. Russia
|
Year |
|
|
1959 |
Russia achieved the remarkable feat of executing the world’s inaugural lunar landing. |
|
1966 |
Building upon their earlier success, Russia further solidified its prowess by accomplishing the world’s first successful soft lunar landing. |
|
1970 |
Continuing their trailblazing endeavours, Russia’s unmanned mission not only reached the moon but also accomplished the retrieval of lunar samples, showcasing their scientific ingenuity. |
2. USA
|
Year |
|
|
1966 |
The United States, in a demonstration of scientific prowess, achieved its own successful soft lunar landing shortly after Russia’s milestone. |
|
2022 |
Standing on the shoulders of past achievements, the US has impressively secured an unparalleled record with 11 successful soft landings, underscoring its position as a leader in lunar exploration. Additionally, the US stands alone in having successfully landed humans on the lunar surface, marking a monumental accomplishment. |
3. China
|
Year |
Achievement |
|
2013 |
In a significant resurgence of lunar exploration, China’s Chang’e 3 lander made a historic touchdown, marking the first lunar landing since the USSR’s Luna 24 mission. |
|
2019 |
Pushing the boundaries of exploration even further, China’s Chang’e 4 achieved an unprecedented feat by conducting a successful soft landing on the enigmatic dark side of the moon. This pioneering achievement solidified China’s status as the first nation to accomplish a spacecraft’s gentle landing on the hitherto unexplored ‘dark’ side. |
Chandrayaan Landing Time
India’s moon mission Chandrayaan-3’s Lander Module (LM) comprising the Vikram Lander and the Pragyan Rover landed successfully on the lunar surface on Wednesday at 6.04 pm IST thus making India only the 4th country to achieve a soft landing.
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Source: newstars.edu.vn