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What TV doesn't, print can't; we deliver.
Should they awaken in optimal condition, the lander and rover could continue operations for at least another 14 Earth days.
After hibernating for a fortnight, the lander Vikram and the rover Pragyan are expected to resume work, if they wake up. As the Sun rose at the landing site on Wednesday, September 20th, ISRO is hopeful that it can revive the lander and rover modules after harnessing enough sunlight.
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) shared an update on the social media platform ‘X’ on Wednesday, stating, ‘Sunrise is expected to have occurred at the Shiv Shakti point today, and soon Vikram and Pragyan will receive usable amounts of sunlight!’
ISRO further said that they will try to re-establish communications with the lander and rover module. It said, “ISRO will now wait for them to heat up above a certain temperature before beginning attempts to re-establish communications with them on 22 Sept.”
The solar-powered Chandrayaan-3 modules had a mission lifespan of only one lunar day, equivalent to approximately 14 Earth days. The electronics were not engineered to endure the frigid nighttime temperatures on the Moon, where it plummets to well below -200 degrees Celsius, especially near the south pole, where Chandrayaan-3 touched down.
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Nonetheless, after accomplishing the primary scientific goals of Chandrayaan-3, ISRO decided to take chances and prolong the operational lifespan of the lander and rover.
In line with this strategy, it preemptively ceased the operations of all instruments slightly before sunset and transitioned them into sleep mode. The hope was that the fully charged batteries would maintain sufficient warmth for the instruments to endure the night.
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After accomplishing its mission, ISRO tweeted on September 2nd, ‘The Pragyan rover has fulfilled all its mission objectives and has been placed in sleep mode by ISRO to enhance its chances of surviving the Lunar night.
In addition, it stated, “It has been parked at a secure location, with its instruments turned off and its solar panels carefully oriented to receive maximum sunlight at the time of the next sunrise on September 22nd.”
Should they awaken in optimal condition, the lander and rover could continue operations for at least another 14 Earth days, thereby further enhancing the scientific data and observations they transmit to ground stations.
