BENGALURU: India’s third lunar mission, Chandrayaan-3, is set to reach the lunar orbit in around six days with another crucial manoeuvre planned between 12am and 1am on August 1. The midnight trans-lunar injection (TLI) manoeuvre will see the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) slingshot the spacecraft towards the Moon. The spacecraft’s onboard thrusters will be fired when it is at the closest point to Earth (perigee).
The slingshot manoeuvre is attempted from perigee because the spacecraft needs to have a high velocity for the operation. At present, Chandrayaan-3 is orbiting Earth in an elliptical orbit at a velocity ranging between 1km/second and 10.3km/second. The velocity is highest at perigee and lowest at apogee. The change in angle required to travel towards the Moon can be added during the operation at perigee.
The thrusters will be fired around five to six hours after the pre-written and preloaded commands for the TLI are enabled. The firing of the thrusters will not only change the spacecraft’s orientation to begin its journey towards the Moon but also increase its velocity. After the TLI, Chandrayaan-3’s velocity is expected to be higher by around 0.5km/second from what it was at perigee.
The average time taken to travel 1.2-lakh km is about 51 hours. The actual distance between Earth and Moon on any given day varies based on their positions, but it is generally between 3.6-lakh km and 4-lakh km. Reaching the Moon’s orbit is just one part of the mission, as ISRO has already placed satellites around the Moon in 2008 (Chandrayaan-1) and 2019 (Chandrayaan-2). The more crucial part of Chandrayaan-3 will be after it reaches the Moon.
Once Chandrayaan-3 captures a lunar orbit, ISRO will have to perform a series of manoeuvres to reduce the altitude of the spacecraft and place it in a 100km circular orbit. The propulsion module will then be separated from the landing module, which is scheduled for August 17. The landing attempt is planned for August 23.
Summary:
★India’s third lunar mission, Chandrayaan-3, is set to reach the lunar orbit in around six days.
★The midnight trans-lunar injection manoeuvre is planned between 12am and 1am on August 1.
★The spacecraft will be slingshot towards the Moon from the closest point to Earth (perigee).
★The thrusters will be fired to change the spacecraft’s orientation and increase its velocity.
★After the manoeuvre, Chandrayaan-3’s velocity is expected to be higher by around 0.5km/second.
★Reaching the Moon’s orbit is one part of the mission, with the landing attempt scheduled for August 23.
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