Watch India’s Chandrayaan-3 try to land on the Moon here at 8:34AM ET

We’ll soon learn if India will be the first nation to nail a soft landing on the moon’s south pole. The Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) Chandrayaan-3 mission, which launched on July 14th and entered lunar orbit on August 5th, will attempt to touch down on Wednesday at around 8:34AM EDT. It follows Russia’s attempt to beat India to the punch that ended badly. The ISRO’s live telecast (watch below) is scheduled to begin at 3:50AM EDT.

The Chandrayaan-3’s Vikram lander will try to touch down near the Moon’s south pole, which is believed to contain water ice. It could provide crucial water, oxygen and fuel for future lunar missions and bases. However, touching down could prove challenging as the region is known for rugged terrain and shadowy craters. This mission’s immediate predecessor, the Chandrayaan-2, crashed in 2019 as it descended to the lunar south pole.

Chandrayaan-3 uses a “failure-based design” to incorporate lessons from the 2019 “hard landing.” The new version includes an expanded landing area, software upgrades and more redundant systems to back up potential outages.

The IRSO’s X (formerly Twitter) account posted early Tuesday morning, “The mission is on schedule. Systems are undergoing regular checks. Smooth sailing is continuing.” It also posted pictures of the Moon’s surface taken from orbit.

You can tune in here early Wednesday morning (US time) to view the Indian lander’s descent.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/watch-indias-chandrayaan-3-try-to-land-on-the-moon-here-at-834am-et-200053930.html?src=rss https://www.engadget.com/watch-indias-chandrayaan-3-try-to-land-on-the-moon-here-at-834am-et-200053930.html?src=rss
Created 2y | Aug 22, 2023, 8:40:20 PM


Login to add comment

Other posts in this group

The Switch 2 was almost called the 'Super Nintendo Switch'

Following its big

Apr 2, 2025, 8:50:37 PM | Engadget
A Minecraft Movie review: It's good, actually

Hear me out. I too rolled my eyes when A Minecraft Movie was announced. We're all tired of seeing Jack Black in video game movies — he was

Apr 2, 2025, 8:50:36 PM | Engadget
Is the $450 Nintendo Switch 2 too expensive?

It seems fitting that Nintendo didn’t reveal the

Apr 2, 2025, 8:50:34 PM | Engadget
Sonos cut retail prices for its Era 100 speaker and Ray soundbar

Sonos has given two of its audio products price cuts. The Era 100 smart speaker and Ray soundbar now retail for $199. The change offers new customers a $50 savings for the Era 100 and $80 on the Ra

Apr 2, 2025, 8:50:33 PM | Engadget
GameChat is decades late and looks pretty janky

In 2002, Microsoft launched Xbox Live with built-in voice chat as one of the main selling points of the then new service. Now, nearly 25 years later, Nintendo is finally giving its fans an easy way

Apr 2, 2025, 8:50:32 PM | Engadget