ISRO’s Attempts to Revive Vikram Lander and Pragyan Rover May Prove Unsuccessful
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is currently facing a formidable task as they strive to revive the Chandrayaan-3 mission on the lunar surface. Their main challenge lies in reestablishing communication with the inactive Vikram Lander and Pragyan Rover. Despite their utmost efforts, no signals have been detected from these lunar entities, putting ISRO in a race against time to awaken these crucial elements of the Chandrayaan-3 mission on the Moon.
ISRO’s determined efforts to contact the Vikram Lander and Pragyan Rover to assess their operational status have yielded no results so far. In a recent statement, ISRO reaffirmed its commitment to continue its relentless pursuit of re-connecting with these lunar probes, PTI reported.
The Chandrayaan-3 mission successfully landed both the Vikram Lander and the Pragyan Rover on the lunar surface on August 23. Their landing site, known as ‘Shiv Shakti Point’, promised to be a center of scientific discovery.
Lunar challenges and a 14-day lifespan
However, the extreme environmental conditions of the moon posed a huge challenge. As Suvendu Patnayak, former assistant director of the Pathani Samanta Planetarium in Bhubaneswar, explained, nighttime temperatures on the Moon drop to a chilling -250 degrees, making electronic components vulnerable. The Vikram Lander and Pragyan Rover were designed to operate optimally for only 14 days on the lunar surface, operating exclusively during lunar daytime when sunlight was available.
Why Vikram Lander, Pragyan’s Rover may not wake up
The reason is the harsh weather conditions on the Moon, especially the extreme cold, which the sensitive electronic components of these machines cannot tolerate. “It is very difficult for other electronic components to work in such a large temperature range. So it was expected that it would not work after 14 days,” Patnayak said. Nevertheless, there is still a glimmer of hope in the scientific community, with some experts expressing optimism that these lunar explorers may be resurrected.
As ISRO eagerly awaits signs of life from its lunar explorers, the world is watching with bated breath, hoping that these attempts to revive the Vikram Lander and the Pragyan Rover defy the odds and provide new insights into the mysteries of the moon.
