India, I reached my destination and you too: Chandrayaan-3's first message from Moon
Chandrayaan-3 successful: India became the first country in the world on Wednesday to successfully land on the far side of the Moon. The Vikram lander, named after the Father of India's space endeavour, landed on the Moon at 6:04 p.m., an event viewed live by millions across the world.
"India, I reached my destination and you too!" messaged Chandrayaan-3 after landing on the Moon.
Isro announced the mission's success on X, writing, "Chandrayaan-3 has successfully soft-landed on the moon."
This comes four years after India's Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) failed to land on the Moon when the lander on Chandrayaan-2 collapsed minutes before landing.
"India is on the moon!" Prime Minister Narendra Modi who is currently attending the 15th BRICS Summit in Johannesburg said. He watched the live telecast and as soon as the touchdown happened he sported a big smile and waved the tricolour.
The countdown of the Vikram hovered at 150 metres, then 130 metres, and 50 metres and decelerated as approached the moon's service before finally touching down on the lunar surface.
As the Vikram lander carrying the Pragyaan rover in its belly touched down on the lunar surface, it marked a giant leap in India’s spacefaring journey providing a well-deserved finale to ISRO’s long years of toil.
The spacecraft was launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Andhra Pradesh’s Sriharikota on July 14. A GSLV Mark 3 (LVM 3) heavy-lift launch vehicle was used for the launch of the spacecraft that was placed in the lunar orbit on August 5 and since then it has been through a series of orbital manoeuvres been lowered closer to the moon’s surface.
- With inputs from agencies
