NASA and ESA Provide Technical Support for ISRO’s Chandrayaan-3 Mission

Chandrayaan-3 is on the verge of making a significant breakthrough as it prepares to land on the South Pole of the Moon at 6:04 pm IST. Throughout this extensive endeavor, numerous individuals and organizations, including NASA and ESA space agencies, have tirelessly contributed and collaborated to ensure the success of ISRO’s Chandrayaan-3 lunar mission.

Since the launch of the Chandrayaan-3 mission on July 14, we have received significant international cooperation. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and European Space Agency (ESA) ground stations are supporting the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) during its journey to the moon. Global backup support is critical during spaceflight, and this is especially true for spacecraft landings. In India, ISRO has a 32 meter deep space tracking facility that plays a crucial role in locating, tracking and communicating its remote spacecraft.

However, there are instances when ISRO needs to communicate with or track a spacecraft outside the coverage area of this antenna. Building new large antennas and control centers worldwide is expensive. To solve this, ISRO sought help from partner organizations. This approach is not only cost-effective, but also promotes cooperative efforts in international space exploration. Know how NASA and ESA are collaborating with ISRO on the Chandrayaan-3 mission:

ESA’s contribution:

ESA’s ground stations on Earth have remained in contact with the spacecraft to ensure its successful operation. ESA plays a key role in the Chandrayaan-3 mission. It uses its ground stations in the ESTRACK network to closely track the spacecraft’s journey. Two ground stations, ESA’s 15-meter antenna in Kourou, French Guiana, and the 32-meter antenna at Goonhilly Earth Station in the UK, have been used to track the satellites, receive telemetry data and relay commands between ISRO’s operations center. in Bengaluru and Chandrayaan-3 satellite.

With a lunar landing attempt set for August 23, ESA has further extended its support by deploying its 35m deep space antenna in New Norcia, Australia. This antenna is critical during the waning phase of the moon. It provides real-time information about the status, position and trajectory of the Lander module. These valuable scientific data are received by the ground stations at Kourou and Goonhilly and are forwarded to ISRO.

NASA Involvement:

NASA’s Deep Space Network (DSN) has helped provide telemetry and tracking during the powered descent phase of Chandrayaan-3. The network’s DSS-36 and DSS-34 stations at the Canberra Deep Space Communications Complex and DSS-65 at the Madrid Deep Space Communications Complex help receive critical data from the spacecraft.

In collaboration with ESA and NASA, ISRO is on its way to create history and make India the fourth country to complete a successful Moon landing mission.