Chandrayaan-3 made a footprint on Namakkal soil before landing on the moonAugust 20, 2023, 11:06 IST
Namakkal: ISRO tested the anorthosite rock sample excavated at Gunnamalai village in Namakkal before landing the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft, lander and rover on the moon.
Competing with superpowers in space, ISRO launched Chandrayaan-1 on 22 Oct 2008. The spacecraft landed on the North Pole of the Moon and conducted a survey, confirming the presence of water in the form of ice on the surface of the Moon. As a follow-up, ISRO launched the Chandrayaan-2 project at a cost of Rs 1,000 crore in 2019 to further explore the moon. Accordingly, a spacecraft was developed to study the surface of the Moon and the South Pole and was launched by the Chandrayaan-2 spacecraft, GSLV, MK-3 rocket.
Due to a technical glitch, Chandrayaan-2 lost contact with the Vikram lander. This project failed. Earlier, the lander and rover on the Chandrayaan-2 spacecraft needed lunar-like soil to test for proper landing. The soil had to be bought from NASA in the United States at an Indian price of 15,000 rupees per kilogram.
Thus, ISRO scientists investigated whether India has that type of soil. At that time, it was revealed that that type of soil is available in Namakkal district, P.Velur taluk, Gunnamalai and Chittamboondi villages. Subsequently, Salem Periyar University Geology Department professors analyzed the soil samples in areas including Chittamboondi and Gunnamalai. The soil was found to contain anorthosite rock, similar to the soil on the moon.
Subsequently, 50 tons of soil and rocks were sent to the ISRO center in Bengaluru, Karnataka. A special laboratory was created with those soil samples and ISRO scientists successfully operated and tested Chandrayaan-2 orbiter safely on the surface of the moon, lander and rover.
Accordingly, it has been reported that several tests were conducted using Namakkal soil at ISRO to see if the lander and rover of Chandrayaan-3, which was successfully launched on July 14, landed safely. The soil is generally pale red or crimson in color. But the soil in Chittamboondi and Gunnamalai area is white in color. Thus, using this soil, Chandrayaan-2 and 3 experiments have caused happiness among the people of Namakkal.
