India’s Pragyan rover encounters a massive 4-metre diametre crater on the lunar surface

India’s Pragyan rover, a participant in the Chandrayaan-3 mission and currently stationed on the Moon, came across a substantial crater measuring 4 meters in diameter on the lunar surface.

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) reported that the rover, a six-wheeled solar-powered vehicle, identified the crater’s presence on August 27th, situated approximately three meters from its own location. Subsequently, the rover was guided towards a safer trajectory.

This development was communicated through the social media platform X.

The Chandrayaan-3 Mission, embarked upon by India, witnessed the rover’s encounter with a 4-meter wide crater on August 27th, 2023, positioned just 3 meters ahead of its current position. Following this discovery, the rover received instructions to retrace its steps. Since its landing, the rover has covered a distance of around 8 meters on the lunar surface, and its mission entails the exploration of the Moon’s geology and atmosphere in the previously uncharted southern pole. Despite its short lifespan of merely 14 Earth days, equivalent to one lunar day, the rover still has 10 more days to fulfill its tasks.

In a historic achievement on August 23rd, India successfully landed the Chandrayaan-3 lander module on the Moon’s southern pole, becoming the fourth nation, after the United States, China, and Russia, to achieve this significant milestone.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi designated the landing site as “Shiv Shakti” in commemoration of this accomplishment during his visit to the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) headquarters on August 26th. Additionally, he disclosed the christening of the site where Chandrayaan-2 had unfortunately crashed in 2019 as “Tiranga”.

This announcement was made in the presence of the ISRO scientists who were instrumental in the mission’s triumph.

S Somanath, the Chief of ISRO, highlighted the potential for groundbreaking discoveries related to water and valuable scientific data in the exploration of the Moon’s southern pole.

The Moon’s southern pole has piqued curiosity since Chandrayaan-1 previously uncovered evidence of water on its surface.

The presence of water ice on the Moon holds the promise of future missions obtaining crucial resources such as fuel, oxygen, and drinking water. However, the challenging landscape poses difficulties for successful landings.