Chandrayaan-3: India's Moon Lander Vikram Aims For Historic Lunar South Pole Landing

 

Chandrayaan-3: India's Moon Lander Vikram Aims For Historic Lunar South Pole Landing

An Isro graphic of the lander and rover on the Moon's surface

India is looking to make history on Wednesday with its third lunar mission set to land on the Moon.

If Chandrayaan-3 is successful, India will be the first country to land near the Moon's little-explored south pole.

One of its major goals is to hunt for water-based ice, which scientists say could support human habitation on the Moon in future.

India's attempt comes just days after Russia's Luna-25 crashed while trying to touch down in the same region.

If successful, it will also be only the fourth country to achieve a soft landing on the Moon - the US, the former Soviet Union and China have all landed near the equator.

India's attempt to land its Chandrayaan-2 mission near the south pole in 2019 was unsuccessful - it crashed into the lunar surface.