India’s third lunar mission Chandrayaan-3’s Vikram lander attempts to locate a safe landing spot on the little-explored south pole, says the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO).
The mission has been met with concerns after the Russian spacecraft crashed on the moon’s surface on Sunday.
Isro released images of the far side of the Moon as its third lunar mission attempts to locate a safe landing spot. The pictures have been taken by Vikram, Chandrayaan-3’s lander, which began the last phase of its mission on Thursday.
Carrying a rover in its belly, Vikram is due to land on the moon on 23 August. The photos have been released a day after the Russian spacecraft crashed into the Moon after spinning out of control.
Russia’s first Moon mission in nearly 50 years was due to be the first ever to land on the south pole but failed after encountering problems as it moved into its pre-landing orbit.
Isro said Sunday that the lander from Chandrayaan-3 has been mapping the landing area and taking images with its “hazard detection and avoidance” camera. The lander is due to touch down on Wednesday at 18:04 IST (12:34 GMT).
The black-and-white images sent by this camera will assist them “in locating a safe landing area – without boulders or deep trenches,” Isro added.
Scientists say landing on the ‘dark side of the moon’ can be a tricky affair as it faces away from Earth, and little is known about it.
But there’s a lot of interest in this part of the Moon which scientists think could hold frozen water and precious elements.
If Chandrayaan-3 is successful, India will be the first to land on the lunar south pole. It will also be only the fourth country to achieve a soft landing on the Moon after the US, the former Soviet Union and China.