Friday, 28 July 2023 | in Guest Column
GUEST COLUMN
Vir Singh
Fifty-three years ago, a human stepped onto the surface of the moon for the first time aboard Apollo 11. Currently, India’s Chandrayaan-3 is on a mission to the moon. It is so interesting, so thrilling and so exhilarating to understand the journeys of India’s three Chandrayaan missions and the possibilities of water, environment and life on the moon, as well as India’s prospects of lunar exploration.
The moon has always been a mysterious and revered place for human life. Since the Apollo 11 mission in 1969, humanity has not overlooked this vast celestial body from the perspective of science and exploration. Instead, numerous countries have initiated their own space missions to travel from Earth to space. India is also a part of this endeavour and is undertaking lunar exploration through its three Chandrayaan missions: Chandrayaan-1, Chandrayaan-2 and currently, Chandrayaan-3.
Chandrayaan-1 mission was initiated by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in 2008. It was designed to provide high-resolution images of the rugged terrain during the journey to the moon. Although it did not succeed in fulfilling its primary objectives, it was significant for humanity as it provided an opportunity to see that there was no indication of water on the lunar surface. Chandrayaan-2 mission, launched in 2019, aimed to touch the lunar south polar region. It consisted of an orbiter, lander and rover. However, due to unforeseen lengthy reasons, the lander of Chandrayaan-2 did not successfully land on the lunar surface. Nevertheless, it remained successful in reaching and exploring other regions of the moon. This mission was crucial in uncovering new data and scientific knowledge about the lunar environment and its historical development.
In addition to India’s current Chandrayaan-3 mission, Indian scientific teams are collaborating with the University of Innsbruck on a separate mission called “Biaree” (Biological Exploration and Laboratory Instrumentation). This mission aims to study the possibilities of life on the moon. Through this mission, scientists will have access to an extensive and high-quality collection for studying the lunar environment.
Although there is no confirmed evidence of life yet from the Chandrayaan-1, Chandrayaan-2 and Chandrayaan-3 missions, these missions are significant steps for the human race. Chandrayaan missions face numerous challenges such as the capability of the atmospheric engine, the harsh lunar temperatures, and the absence of gravity, which pose difficulties for navigation. These missions help us discover new technologies and contribute to our understanding of the lunar surface and environment. The ISRO and other scientific organisations are continuously developing such lunar missions that will provide us with more information about water, environment and the possibilities of life on the lunar surface. These missions will provide us with knowledge about the potential for permanent human habitation and further advancements in establishing contact with the moon. Lunar exploration is becoming increasingly significant for India and through it, we will remain eager for new initiatives in space exploration.
If Chandrayaan-3’s soft landing on the south pole of the moon is successfully completed on August 23, which is very likely, then India will be the harbinger of a new revolution in the field of space. If data on its success and in line with the expectations of life development can be found, then it can also be hoped that in the long future, India will open new doors of construction for the people of the earth to settle in the lap of Chanda Mama.
It is an eternal truth that the knowledge that India gave to humanity by making the universe an open book in the heyday of its civilisation is unmatched. Incredible knowledge about our Brahmand is the invaluable heritage of Indian eternal civilisation. A deeper exploration of the moon and other aspects of space India is currently engaged in will be a cultural renaissance for India. We should now make space not only our objective, but also our subject. Maybe India seeds the moon with life in a distant future and also opens doors of life to other planets.
(The author is professor emeritus of environmental science, GB Pant University of Agriculture and Technology. Views expressed are personal.)
