Chandrayaan-3 set to land on moon on August 23 around 6:04 pm: ISRO

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India's moon mission will get closer to success as it will reach a remarkable milestone with the Chandrayaan-3 mission poised to achieve a soft landing on the surface of the Moon on August 23  at around 18:04 hours-- and it can be watched live by the nation on multiple platforms.

"Chandrayaan-3 is set to land on the moon on August 23, 2023, around 18:04 Hrs. IST. Thanks for the wishes and positivity!," tweeted ISRO.

This achievement would mark a significant step forward for Indian Science, Engineering, Technology, and Industry, symbolising our nation's progress in space exploration, ISRO said on August 21.

In a meticulously orchestrated sequence of events, the Chandrayaan-3 mission's timeline has unfolded with precision and success, leading up to a monumental lunar touchdown. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has provided a detailed account of the mission's milestones:

Declared on July 6, the launch date of Chandrayaan-3 was confirmed as July 14, with the spacecraft poised for liftoff from Sriharikota's second launch pad. The mission kicked off on a strong note, as vehicle electrical tests were successfully completed on July 7.

A significant milestone arrived on July 11, marked by the conclusion of an extensive 24-hour 'Launch Rehearsal', faithfully replicating the entire launch sequence. On July 14, the LVM3 M4 vehicle propelled Chandrayaan-3 into its designated orbit, setting the stage for a remarkable journey.

The journey continued with a series of carefully executed orbit-raising maneuvers. On July 15, the first such maneuver propelled the spacecraft into an orbit of 41762 km x 173 km. Subsequent maneuvers on July 17 and July 22 adjusted Chandrayaan-3's orbit dimensions to 41603 km x 226 km and 71351 km x 233 km, respectively.

August brought pivotal developments. On the 1st of the month, Chandrayaan-3 was strategically placed into a translunar orbit of 288 km x 369328 km. A major milestone was achieved on August 5, as the spacecraft was successfully inserted into lunar orbit, with dimensions of 164 km x 18074 km.

Fine-tuning continued, with an orbit adjustment on August 6, setting lunar orbit dimensions to 170 km x 4,313 km. Skillful maneuvering by ISRO on August 9 shifted the spacecraft to a lower lunar orbit, achieving dimensions of 174 km x 1437 km.

As the mission approached its zenith, Chandrayaan-3 progressively neared the moon's surface, reaching an orbit of 150 km x 177 km on August 14. On August 16, the spacecraft executed its fifth and final Moon-bound maneuver, achieving a nearly circular lunar orbit of 163 km x 153 km.

With anticipation building, August 17 saw a pivotal moment as the landing module, housing the Vikram lander and Pragyan rover, detached from its propulsion system. The subsequent day, Chandrayaan-3 successfully executed a 'deboosting' operation, shrinking its orbit to 113 km x 157 km.

In a culmination of these efforts, on August 20, Chandrayaan-3 achieved its final milestone. The second 'deboosting' operation was triumphantly executed, resulting in the Lander Module's orbit being reduced to an impressive 25 km x 134 km.