India Launches Chandrayaan-3 Mission to the Dark Side of the Moon, Marking a Major Milestone for Its Space Program

On Friday, July 14th, 2023, India’s space agency launched a rocket from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, India, carrying the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft. Chandrayaan-3, which translates to “moon craft” in Sanskrit, was launched aboard a LVM3-M4 heavy-lift rocket.

The mission was a success, with the rocket lifting off with a bang and tearing through the clouds. After 16 minutes, mission control announced that the rocket had successfully put the Chandrayaan-3 lander into an Earth orbit that will send it looping toward a moon landing next month.

The launch of Chandrayaan-3 marks a major milestone for India’s space program, as it will be the first time that a spacecraft has landed on the dark side of the moon. The spacecraft is carrying a lunar lander and a small rover, which will be used to explore the lunar surface.

The successful launch of Chandrayaan-3 has been met with great excitement and joy from scientists and space enthusiasts alike. If the mission is successful, it will be a major achievement for India’s space program and will further cement India’s position as a major space power.

The Chandrayaan-3 mission is scheduled to land on the moon next month, and the world will be watching with anticipation to see if India’s space program can pull off this unprecedented feat.