London [United Kingdom], August 22 : Ahead of the much-awaited Chandrayaan-3 soft landing, High Commissioner of India to the United Kingdom, Vikram Doraiswami said that there could be no bigger statement of India's remarkable success as a nation.
"For me, there could be no bigger statement of India's remarkable success as a nation. I am not saying this just as an Indian diplomat but as a proud Indian," he said.
He further said that India started the space program when it had little economic means.
"We started our space program at a point in time when India had very little economic means. Today it is a space programme that is limited only by human imagination. We will be among the few nations to be able to land anything on the moon. That's ahead of everybody practically in this world," he added.
Doraiswamy added, "We have been able to run this space program even today at a price that is less than we know even of some Hollywood movies. It is cost-effective, technology-intensive...It is something that really fires the imagination of the young people."
Moreover, he also noted that it is a brilliant example of everything that is an aspiration about India.
In its latest update on Chandrayaan-3 soft landing, ISRO meanwhile said the mission is on schedule and systems are undergoing regular checks.“Smooth sailing is continuing, The Mission Operations Complex (at ISRO) is buzzed with energy and excitement!” ISRO posted on X, formerly Twitter.
After Russia's Luna-25 mission failed, all eyes will be on India as its Chandrayaan-3 is set to land on the moon on August 23, 2023 (Wednesday), around 18:04 IST.
The live telecast of the landing operations will begin at 5:20 PM IST on Wednesday. Live actions of landing will be available on the ISRO website, its YouTube channel, Facebook, and public broadcaster DD National TV from 5:27 PM IST on Aug 23, 2023.
Along with the mission’s update, ISRO also released images of the moon captured by the Lander Position Detection Camera (LPDC) from an altitude of about 70 km.
These images assist the lander module in determining its position (latitude and longitude) by matching them against an onboard moon reference map.
On Monday, ISRO released a series of images of the lunar far side area captured by the Lander Hazard Detection and Avoidance Camera (LHDAC). This camera assists in locating a safe landing area without boulders or deep trenches during the descent. Also, in a significant development, the Chandrayaan-2 orbiter which was still orbiting around the moon established a two-way connection with the lander module of Chandrayaan-3 on Monday.
The Indian Space Research Organisation launched the Chandrayaan-3 mission on July 14. The spacecraft was launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Andhra Pradesh’s Sriharikota.
The stated objectives of Chandrayaan-3, India's third lunar mission, are safe and soft landing on the lunar surface, rover moving on the moon's surface, and in-situ scientific experiments.
India will be the fourth country in the world to achieve this feat after the United States, Russia, and China, but India will be the only country in the world to land on the lunar south pole.
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