Chandrayaan-3 mission update: Shrouded by lunar night, hope still left for Vikram Lander and Pragyan Rover?

Photo Credit: ISRO

Chandrayaan-3 mission update: Hopes of reviving its Vikram Lander and Pragyan Rover have virtually been extinguished due to the onset of the next lunar night at the Shiv Shakti Point landing site, which started on September 30.

Photo Credit: ISRO

Shiv Shakti Point is situated between the Manzinuz C and Simpelius N craters, approximately 4,200 kilometers from the lunar north pole.

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Lunar night lasts for 14 days and brings frigid temperatures as low as -200 degrees Celsius and this will further damage electronics on Chandrayaan-3 mission's Vikram Lander and Pragyan Rover.

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Both the Vikram Lander and Pragyan Rover rely on sunlight for their operation through their solar panels.

Photo Credit: ISRO

After successfully completing their initial tasks under the Chandrayaan-3 mission, Vikram Lander and Pragyan Rover entered a state of hibernation on September 2.

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ISRO had put Pragyan Rover and Vikram lander to sleep in order for them to be able to survive the lunar night on September 2. 

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Efforts were made by the European station in Kourou and ISRO Telemetry, Tracking, and Command Network (ISTRAC) in Bengaluru to revive both, but they proved unsuccessful.

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Sadly for India and ISRO, the current lunar night probably marks the end of the Chandrayaan-3 mission, as it is likely impossible for the lander and rover to survive in such extreme weather conditions.

Photo Credit: ISRO

In a historic feat for India, Chandrayaan-3 achieved a smooth landing on the Moon's South Pole on August 23. 

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Vikram Lander and Pragyan Rover made important discoveries, including detection of key metals such as sulphur, aluminum, calcium, silicon, iron, oxygen, titanium, chromium, manganese and even registered a Moonquake.

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ISRO also informed that temperature observations ranged from -10 degrees Celsius to 50 degrees Celsius on the lunar surface.

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ISRO's chief, S Somanath, considers the Chandrayaan-3 mission largely successful, stating that the rover accomplished its expected objectives.