Centre approves Chandrayaan-5 mission: ISRO chief

New Delhi : The Central government has approved the Chandrayaan 5 mission, and it will carry a whopping 250 kg rover to the lunar surface, said the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) Chairman V Narayanan.

It will be the fifth flight as part of the Chandrayaan programme, also known as the Indian Lunar Exploration Programme, and aims for the exploration of the Moon.

The Chandrayaan-3 was a resounding success making India the first country in the world to make a soft landing on the South Pole of the Moon. India also became the fourth nation after the erstwhile USSR (now Russia), the US, and China to make a soft landing on the Moon. While Chandrayaan-3 carried a 25-kg rover named ‘Prayagyaan,’ the new Chandrayaan-5 mission, in collaboration with Japan, will feature a much heavier 250-kg rover.

“This advanced rover aims to conduct detailed studies of the Moon’s surface and composition,” said Narayanan. “Just three days back, we got the approval for the Chandrayaan-5 mission. We will be doing it in association with Japan.” The collaboration is expected to enhance the mission's scientific capabilities.

The Chandrayaan programme has been instrumental in India's lunar exploration and a lunar orbiter, an impactor, a soft lander, and a rover spacecraft. Chandrayaan-1 was launched in 2008 and was a success. It mapped the Moon's surface chemically, mineralogically, and photo-geologically.

However, Chandrayaan-2, launched in 2019, encountered setbacks during its final stages. However, its orbiter continues to send hundreds of high-resolution images. ISRO aims to launch Chandrayaan-4 by 2027, to collect and return lunar samples.

The space agency also aims to launch Chandrayaan 5, and 6 by the next decade -- with an aim "to achieve the milestone of a $44 billion space sector by 2035”. Beyond Chandrayaan, the country also aims for the Gaganyaan Mission -- the first human spaceflight mission, the Venus Orbiter Mission, unofficially known as Shukrayaan (2028).

Chennai:The Kulasekarapattinam spaceport in Tamil Nadu's Thoothukudi district, the second launch complex for ISRO outside Andhra Pradesh, will see the maiden launch with the Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) in 24 months, chairman of the space agency V Narayanan said on Monday.

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) SSLV will primarily support polar launches of upto 500 kg, with Indian industry involved in its production. "All facilities will be commissioned for launch in 24 months. The first launch will take place in two years. Don't think it will be literally small in size. It will be a 500 kg satellite," Narayanan told reporters after inaugurating a new research centre at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras - ‘S Ramakrishnan Centre of Excellence for Research in Fluid and Thermal Science (ISRO-IITM).' Named after the former director of ISRO's Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre and a distinguished alumnus of IIT Madras, the Centre inaugurated in the presence of IIT-Madras director Prof V Kamakoti, will support ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat' initiatives, promoting self-reliance in advanced space technologies and attract global talent and research funding.

"This will position India as a leader in thermal sciences research for space applications," the IIT Madras said. Narayanan said the Centre would contribute immensely for the country's development.