India is poised to witness the attempt of its indigenous spacecraft, Chandrayaan-3, to achieve a soft landing on the lunar surface this Wednesday. The touchdown is scheduled for 6:04 pm on August 23, as announced by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in a statement on X (formerly Twitter).
Should Chandrayaan-3 successfully achieve a lunar touchdown and place its robotic lunar rover on the surface, India will join the ranks of the United States, China, and the former Soviet Union as the fourth nation to master the technology of gentle lunar landings.
The following are key individuals associated with Chandrayaan-3:
1. S Somanath: ISRO Chairman
S Somanath, the visionary behind India's ambitious Moon mission, leads ISRO. He is also credited with expediting ISRO's other projects, including Gaganyaan and the solar mission Aditya-L1, according to a report by TOI.
2. P Veeramuthuvel: Chandrayaan-3 Project Director
P Veeramuthuvel serves as the project director for India's latest lunar touchdown mission. He assumed this role in 2019.
3. Mohana Kumar: Mission Director
As the mission director for Chandrayaan-3, S Mohana Kumar, a senior scientist from the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, plays a pivotal role.
4. S Unnikrishnan Nair: Director of Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC)
Heading the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) in Thumba, Kerala, S Unnikrishnan Nair and his team oversee critical aspects of this mission.
5. M Sankaran: Director of U R Rao Satellite Centre (URSC)
M Sankaran, director of the U R Rao Satellite Centre, leads the satellite fraternity to address national needs in communication, navigation, remote sensing, meteorology, and inter-planetary exploration.
6. A Rajarajan: Chief of Launch Authorisation Board (LAB)
A Rajarajan, a scientist and director of the Satish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR (SDSC SHAR) in Sriharikota, specializes in composites and leads the Launch Authorisation Board (LAB).
7. Ritu Karidhal Srivastava - Senior Scientist, ISRO
She is popularly known as India’s ROCKET WOMAN
who spearheaded the entire mission. She was the Deputy Operations Director to India's Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM), Mangalyaan.
