ISRO Achieves Milestone: Chandrayaan-3 Rocket Module Successfully Returns to Earth Orbit, Shows Cutting-Edge Lunar Return Technology

With the successful completion of the Chandrayaan-3 mission, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has achieved a major victory. The spacecraft was scheduled to make a gentle lunar landing close to the south pole zone when it was launched on July 14, 2023. The scientific instruments ran nonstop for one lunar day after the historic August 23 landing of the Vikram lander and the following release of the Pragyan rover, achieving the mission’s goals.
The lander module was then transported by the Propulsion Module (PM) from the Geostationary Transfer Orbit (GTO) to the final lunar polar circular orbit. The Spectro-polarimetry of suitable Planet Earth (SHAPE) payload in the PM was turned on after the separation. A month in lunar orbit was achieved with almost 100 kg of fuel still in the PM, despite the original three-month operation being scheduled for optimal orbital motions.
The brilliant decision was made by ISRO to use this extra fuel to show mission operation strategies for a sample return mission and to collect more data for upcoming lunar missions. In order to achieve this, the PM was carefully re-orbited to an appropriate Earth orbit, avoiding collisions with the Earth’s geosynchronous orbit and the surface of the Moon. The PM was able to enter Earth’s orbit on October 13, 2023, thanks to the successful completion of return techniques, which included a Trans-Earth Injection (TEI).
As of November 22, operational Earth-orbiting satellites are not in danger of coming into close range to the PM due to its almost 13-day orbit period and 27-degree inclination. The fact that the SHAPE payload, which was intended for earth observation, is still operational while the Earth is in its field of view indicates ISRO’s determination to maximizing mission value. Beneficial results from the return maneuvers include trajectory planning, software module development, fly-bys with assistance from gravity, and controlled end-of-life situations that guarantee no trash formation. One notable achievement for India’s space exploration efforts is the successful completion of Chandrayaan-3 and the PM’s innovative experiment.