Chandrayaan 3 - 7 things to feel proud about


Chandrayaan 3 - 7 things we can feel proud about.

It's a moment of pride, for all Indians today, as Chandrayaan 3, landed on the moon.

India is the  the only country to land its spacecraft on the lunar south pole. India is the second country, along with China, to have an operating rover on the moon. India is only the fourth country to do a soft landing on Moon, after USA  Russia and China.

There are a few other things, we all must feel proud about.


1. Frugal engineering at its best. 

We did this, at the most economical cost of just $75m. Contrast this with Christopher Nolans movie cost of interstellar at $165m. Imagine, the real travel to moon is less than half the cost of making a Hollywood space movie. This info even generated a response from the world's richest man Elon Musk "Good for India"

India is always known as the land if frugal engineering. Indian companies have taught the whole world how to innovate at low cost, in many areas, from aerospace, pharmaceutical, fmcg, retail, automobile to IT industry. And this is another proof point, high quality engineering need not be high cost.

2. Indigenous innovation is great.

NASA's Apollo 11, Russias Luna and China’s Chang’e 2,  arrived on the lunar surface in under four days. A question arises as to why India's third moon mission took over 40 days for a soft landing on the moon? Unlike other moon missions, ISRO has used the slingshot technique to place Chandrayaan -3 in the lunar orbit. This technique uses gravity of both earth and moon to generate velocity required to enter the Moon’s orbit. See picture. Here slow and steady wins the race, both from cost and sustainability using a fraction of fuel used by other missions.

3. Acceptance of Failure 

The previous attempt to land on moon, chandrayaan 2 in 2019 failed. Who can forget the honorable prime Minister Modi himself being present at ISRO with the scientists and consoling the former ISRO director Mr. K Sivan, by hugging him. It was a public failure on a live telecast, but everyone in India understood failures are the stepping stones for success. And it came right from the top. This energized ISRO to build a new model for launch learning from failure. The landing could have failed with such public expectations. But Indians have learnt to accept failure now, a sign of growing confidence.

4. Participation in a democracy is key.

Someone remarked, Chandrayan 3, must be the most watched TV event in India, comparable to cricket world cup. There was prayers in temples, churches and mosques across India for safe soft landing on moon. Schools, colleges and offices in India stopped working for 30 mins and everyone was glued to thier TV set. Imagine 1400 million people across different languages, ethnicities, religion, different levels of affluence and education, coming together as one, despite knowing it can be success or failure. That's magic.

5. Home grown talent triumphs.

Who are the scientists and engineers behind this launch? No major foreign or ivy league institutions. From colleges, literally in the backyard of ISRO in South India like Madras Institute of Technology, IIT Madras, IISC Bangalore, PSG tech Coimbatore, NITs etc. But most of them have been serving in ISRO for long. Showing the power of local engineering institutions in doing world class work in propulsion, rocketry, avionics, computer, electronics, electrical, aeronautical and mechanical engineering. 
 
6. Use of Artificial intelligence in landing.

The entire world had been buzzing with the possibilities of AI from 2022. AI-driven sensors played an important role in ensuring a secure touchdown on the lunar surface. The tech helped the lander to anticipate lunar topography, identify potential hazards, and expertly navigate its descent, mitigating risks and enhancing safety. ISRO Chairman, S Somnath, unveiled a technological breakthrough, highlighting a sensor array comprising velocimeters and altimeters. These instruments provide vital data on the lander's speed and altitude, while a suite of cameras (including a hazard avoidance camera and inertia-based cameras) capture crucial visuals. These data streams are seamlessly integrated using advanced computer algorithms to generate a comprehensive image pinpointing the lander's precise location.

7. Social media updates from ISRO 

ISRO's social media channels adopted an informal tone to engage space enthusiasts during the Chandrayaan-3 mission. With phrases like "Welcome buddy!" and "Thanks for the ride, mate!" sprinkled among technical updates, ISRO's approach deviated from the norm. The posts garnered millions of views and formed a unique connection with the audience. 

Congratulations to ISRO team, and my fellow Indian citizens.

Nash Narasimhan Tupil 
23rd August 2023

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