Chandrayaan2

Chandrayaan-2 is India’s second lunar exploration mission coordinated by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). Launched on 22 July 2019 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, it used the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark III to place an orbiter into lunar orbit, along with a lander named Vikram and a rover named Pragyan. The mission followed Chandrayaan-1 (2008) and aimed to demonstrate soft-landing and roving on the Moon, while studying the lunar south polar region.

The mission consisted of an orbiter, a lander, and a rover. The orbiter remained in a near-polar lunar orbit and carried a suite of instruments for high-resolution imaging, spectroscopy, and mapping of the surface and its mineralogy. The lander Vikram was designed to soft-land near the lunar south pole, after which the rover Pragyan would operate on the surface to analyze the terrain and composition. On 7 September 2019, during the final descent phase, contact with Vikram was lost and the lander is believed to have crashed; Pragyan did not deploy.

Despite the loss of the lander and rover, the Chandrayaan-2 orbiter has continued to operate and transmit data for an extended period, contributing to lunar science with high-resolution mapping, mineralogical studies, and investigations of the Moon’s exosphere. The mission demonstrated significant advances in ISRO’s capabilities in lunar operations and data collection.

Chandrayaan-2's experience informed subsequent lunar programs, including Chandrayaan-3, which achieved a successful soft landing on the Moon in 2023.