India took moon exploration to the next phase becoming the first country to land near the lunar south pole — an “exciting accomplishment not only for them but for the international community,” according to a moon expert.
India’s mission Chandrayaan-3 successfully soft-landed on the moon Wednesday, joining the U.S., Russia and China as the only countries to soft-land a spacecraft on the moon.
The spacecraft landed further south than any in history, near the lunar south pole where some researchers believe there is plenty of water ice. The south pole is a potential spot for moon bases in the future.
“It’s a fantastic achievement for India,” University of Notre Dame Professor Clive Neal told the Herald. “It’s an exciting accomplishment not only for them but for the international community.
“This is an area of the moon we have no idea about,” he added. “And this gives us another data point in the highlands of the moon.”
India’s successful mission comes four years after a failed moon landing in 2019.
Also, Russia just days ago was trying to land in the same south pole area, but that moon mission failed.
“At the south pole, people think there’s a lot of water ice to help generate rocket fuel, but we don’t really know if that’s possible right now,” Neal said.
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson congratulated the Indian Space Research Organisation.
“Congratulations @isro on your successful Chandrayaan-3 lunar South Pole landing!” Nelson tweeted. “And congratulations to #India on being the 4th country to successfully soft-land a spacecraft on the Moon. We’re glad to be your partner on this mission!”
Looking back on the space race in the 1960s when it was a competition between the U.S. and the Soviet Union, Neal said he hopes there’s cooperation between nations moving forward to get humanity out into the solar system.
“I’m hoping we can do this cooperatively instead of a race,” Neal said. “We should work together, rather than in competition with each other.”
On Wednesday, a lander with a rover inside touched down on the lunar surface at 6:04 p.m. local time, sparking celebrations across India.
The lunar rover will slide down a flap from the lander within hours or a day and conduct experiments, including an analysis of the mineral composition of the lunar surface.
India is expected to attempt a manned lunar mission next.
Herald wire services were used in this report.
