Chandrayaan-3 re-enters Moon’s sphere of influence, provides vital scientific data

Chandrayaan-3 Propulsion Module Re-enters Moon’s Sphere of Influence (Image: ISRO)

Have you ever wondered what happens after a spacecraft completes its lunar landing? The Chandrayaan-3 Propulsion Module (CH3-PM) recently re-entered the Moon’s sphere of influence for a series of flybys. This milestone comes more than two years after the historic soft landing of the mission’s lander and rover in August 2023.

What path did the module follow to return near the Moon? Launched on July 14, 2023, aboard an LVM3 rocket from Sriharikota, Chandrayaan-3 was designed to land safely, operate the rover, and perform in-situ experiments. After the lander and rover achieved success on August 23, 2023, the Propulsion Module remained in lunar orbit at about 150 km altitude. In October 2023, ISRO executed trans-Earth injection manoeuvres, moving the module into a high-altitude Earth-bound orbit.

When did CH3-PM approach the Moon again? The first lunar flyby occurred on November 6, 2025, at 3,740 km, outside the Indian Deep Space Network’s visibility. A second flyby on November 11, 2025, brought it within 4,537 km, allowing close monitoring. These manoeuvres expanded its orbit from 100,000 x 300,000 km to 409,000 x 727,000 km, while the inclination shifted from 34° to 22°.

What did ISRO learn from these close passes over the Moon? The ISTRAC network closely tracked the orbiting CH3-PM to ensure safety during separation from the other orbiters while gathering gravitational interaction measurements. Mission controllers say that the space probe continues in a nominal state. To planetary scientists and mission planners, such events have demonstrated ISRO's increasingly advanced capability in post-landing spacecraft operations and the invaluable guidance to be derived for future deep-space missions.