India's moon mission, Chandrayaan-3, has been successfully inserted into the lunar orbit, confirmed the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on Saturday.
Chandrayaan-3 that was launched, on-board LVM3-M4 rocket, from Sriharikota on July 14 is expected to land on the lunar surface on August 23.
“I am feeling lunar gravity,” quipped ISRO on behalf of Chandrayaan-3.
“A retro-burning at the Perilune was commanded from the Mission Operations Complex (MOX), ISTRAC, Bengaluru. The next operation - reduction of orbit – is scheduled for Aug 6, 2023, around 23:00 Hrs. IST,” tweeted ISRO.
The spacecraft had entered the translunar orbit by midnight August 1 after exiting the earth's orbit.
India is aiming to become the fourth country to achieve a controlled lunar landing, after the United States, the former Soviet Union, and China.
The Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft will be the first to land at the lunar south pole, a region of particular interest due to the presence of water ice.
In 2020, the Chandrayaan-2 mission had failed at the final hurdle following a lander and rover crash near the touchdown site.