Chandrayaan-3 Update: Witness Pragyan Rover's Lunar 'Moonwalk' as it Descends from Vikram Lander's Platform

"Well it moon-walked after slowly rolling down on the moon lander's ramp," said the Indian space agency.

A moonwalk refers to a dance move popularised by Michael Jackson during his performance of "Billie Jean" on 'Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever'.

The lander, a component of the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft, safely landed near the moon’s south pole on Wednesday, following a meticulous procedure.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter) on Thursday, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) announced: "Chandrayaan-3 ROVER: Made in India, Made for the MOON! The Ch-3 Rover ramped down from the Lander and India took a walk on the moon!"

Whilst the rover moonwalked on Thursday, ISRO unveiled the eagerly anticipated video on Friday.

The video, captured by the lander's camera (India's first lunar selfie), showcases the rover with its deployed solar panel descending the ramp, touching the moon's soil, and progressing forward.

The video also displays the imprint of the rover's wheel on the lunar soil, along with its shadow and solar panel.

ISRO's post read: "Lander Module payloads ILSA, RAMBHA, and ChaSTE are turned ON today (Thursday). Rover mobility operations have commenced. All activities are on schedule. All systems are normal."

As per the space agency, the propulsion module payload SHAPE was activated on Sunday.

With the successful landing, a substantial phase of the Rs 600 crore Chandrayaan-3 mission has been accomplished.

The subsequent phase involves the moon rover rolling down from the lander, engaging in movement, and conducting programmed experiments.

ISRO highlights that the moon rover is equipped with an Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) and a Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscope (LIBS) to analyse the elemental composition in the vicinity of the landing site.

The lander is also tasked with various activities, supported by its payloads: Chandra's Surface Thermophysical Experiment (ChaSTE) to measure thermal conductivity and temperature; Instrument for Lunar Seismic Activity (ILSA) to measure seismicity around the landing site; RAMBHA Langmuir Probe (LP) to estimate plasma density and variations. A passive Laser Retroreflector Array from NASA is onboard for lunar laser ranging studies.

ISRO notes that the mission life of the lander and rover is 1 Lunar day or 14 Earth days.

"The rover rolled down onto the moon's surface from the lander around 12.30 a.m. Thursday. It's mobile and leaving an imprint on the lunar surface," stated Dr S. Unnikrishnan Nair, Director, Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC), to IANS.

The wheels of the rover are engraved with the logos of ISRO and the national emblem to mark its movement.

Unnikrishnan mentioned that the rover will gather moon samples, conduct experiments, and transmit data back to the lander.

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The above article has been published from a wire source with minimal modifications to the headline and text.