'If we can't land on 23rd, we have..': ISRO has a backup plan for Chandrayaan-3 Moon landing if things go wrong

The Chandrayaan-3 mission is on schedule, the ISRO said on Tuesday, a day before the scheduled touch-down of its lander on the surface of the Moon. Director SAC, Ahmedabad ISRO, however, said that if systems do not function as anticipated, the landing will then be attempted on August 27.

Ahmedabad: Leading up to Chandrayaan-3's scheduled landing on the untouched south pole of the moon on August 23rd, Ahmedabad ISRO Director Nilesh Desai Tuesday said that the landing will proceed as planned, however, if the systems do not function the landing will again be attempted on August 27.

"We will try to land successfully on August 23 as the ongoing process says. But as you know, the landing will start at 5.47 PM in the evening which will take almost 17 minutes and 21 seconds. We will upload the commands before 2 hours. We will analyse the telemetry of the electronic and mechanical sub-systems in the lander and the condition whether it is favourable or not," Nilesh Desai, Director of Space Applications Centre (SAC), Ahmedabad, a lead centre of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.

Desai added that if the systems do not function as anticipated the landing will then be attempted on August 27. "No need to worry if we cannot land on the 23rd, we have fixed the 27th for landing. The difference will be the distance. On the 27th, we will land from 17 Km instead of 30 Km." On Monday, ISRO released images of the lunar far side captured by the Lander Hazard Detection and Avoidance Camera or LHDAC.

The camera assists in locating a safe landing area -- without boulders or deep trenches -- during the lander's descent. The photos came a day after Russia's Luna-25 spacecraft crashed into the moon after spinning out of control, in a setback to Russia's space ambitions. "Russia is considered as a superpower in space but their Luna 25 crashed. They have advanced technology. They still failed to land. They also tried to go to the South Pole. But as you all know, ISRO has worked really hard to make this mission successful so no need to worry," said Nilesh.

Chandrayaan-3's lander module has established two-way communication with Chandrayaan-2's orbiter and the ISRO said on Monday all systems are working perfectly and no contingencies are anticipated. The two-way contact potentially offers ground controllers more channels for communication with Chandrayaan-3.

"This time we have made changes in software and hardware along with testing considering the unfavourable conditions that boost our confidence. With all the luck and your blessings, wishes; we will be able to make a successful soft landing," Desai said. A success for Chandrayaan-3 would make India only the fourth country to successfully land on the moon, after the former USSR, the United States and China and the first to land on the treacherous lunar south pole. (With PTI inputs)