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'Chandrayaan-3 will be launched in July this year': ISRO chief S Somanath

The Chandrayaan-3 mission is expected to launch in July from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota to the part of the Moon that has largely remained in the darkness, saved from the cosmic rays of the Sun.

Chandrayaan 3 will be launched in July this year': ISRO chief S Somanath AJR
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First Published May 29, 2023, 12:55 PM IST

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chief S Somanath on Monday (May 29) said that Chandrayaan-3 will be launched in July this year. This comes after the space agency successfully launched a navigation satellite aboard a GSLV rocket.

This launch holds great significance as it marks the deployment of the second-generation navigation satellite series, ensuring the continuity of NavIC (Navigation with Indian Constellation) services. 

ISRO deploys second-generation navigation satellite NVS-01 in orbit (WATCH)

The launch Chandrayaan-3 comes four years after the Chandrayaan-2 lander-rover crashed and dashed the hopes of over a billion people. The Chandrayaan-3 mission is expected to launch in July from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota to the part of the Moon that has largely remained in the darkness, saved from the cosmic rays of the Sun.

Senior officials at ISRO confirmed that the mission is in the final stages of being prepped and now, the payloads are being integrated at the UR Rao Satellite Centre as teams work hard to meet the mid-July launch target onboard India's heaviest rocket, the Launch Vehicle Mark-III.

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Launched in 2018, the Chandryaan-2 mission was a unique combination of three separate systems -- an orbiter, a lander, and a rover. While the orbiter worked flawlessly and set itself up in an orbit around Moon, the lander and rover unit of the mission was lost as it crash-landed on the far side of the Moon.

The Indian space agency is known for its cost-effective approach and has decided to launch just a lander and a rover with Chandryaan-3 aiming to repurpose Chandrayaan-2's orbiter for the new lunar mission.

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