Bengaluru’s Chandrayaan-3 Rover Successfully Overcomes Lunar Obstacle, Inspiring Confidence in ISRO

Chandrayaan-3’s rover, Pragyan, has successfully overcome its first obstacle on the lunar surface, a crater with a depth of approximately 100mm. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) control room, responsible for guiding and monitoring the rover, expressed relief at the achievement. Project director P Veeramuthuvel stated that the progress of the scientific experiments conducted so far has instilled confidence in the possibility of positive outcomes.

Veeramuthuvel acknowledged the efforts of hundreds of ISRO colleagues, particularly those from the subsystems such as navigation-guidance-and-control, propulsion, sensors, and mainframe subsystems. He also credited the guidance of URSC director M Sankaran and the ISRO top management for the successful mission.

The rover’s operations are not fully autonomous, and Pragyan faces multiple challenges that must be overcome with the assistance of ground teams. Moving the rover from one point to another involves several steps, including path planning and downloading onboard navigation camera data to generate a digital elevation model (DEM). The ground and mechanisms team then determines the path and sends the command for the rover to follow. The maximum DEM that can be generated is five meters each time the navigation camera captures images. Despite the challenges, the rover has already completed multiple movements, covering a maximum distance of five meters each time.

The turnaround time between each rover movement operation is approximately five hours due to various limitations. The rover’s miniature systems, although state-of-the-art, face constraints such as limited telemetry and telecommunications availability, the need for continuous sun tracking, and the rover’s deployable solar panel, which only has half the space available for solar cells. Additionally, the data rate from the rover is limited, as it can only communicate with the lander, requiring the ISRO control room to download the data to the ground. Despite these limitations, Veeramuthuvel expressed confidence in the careful planning of each rover movement and the successful work being done.

Chandrayaan-3’s rover, Pragyan, continues to explore the lunar surface, overcoming obstacles and conducting scientific experiments under the guidance of the ISRO control room.

What are some of the limitations faced by the Pragyan rover during its operations on the lunar surface?

Chandrayaan-3’s rover, Pragyan, has made an exciting breakthrough on the lunar surface by successfully navigating a deep crater. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) control room, responsible for guiding and monitoring the rover, expressed relief and satisfaction at this achievement. P Veeramuthuvel, the project director, commended the efforts of the ISRO colleagues from various subsystems who played a crucial role in this successful mission.

Pragyan’s operations require assistance from ground teams, as it is not entirely autonomous. Moving the rover involves several steps, including path planning and utilizing the onboard navigation camera data to develop a digital elevation model (DEM). The ground and mechanisms team then determines the path and sends the necessary commands to the rover. Although there are challenges involved, Pragyan has already completed multiple movements, covering a maximum distance of five meters each time.

Due to various limitations, the turnaround time between each rover movement operation is approximately five hours. The miniature systems of the rover face constraints such as limited telemetry and telecommunications availability, the need for continuous sun tracking, and a deployable solar panel with restricted space for solar cells. Additionally, the data rate from the rover is limited, requiring the ISRO control room to download the data to the ground. Despite these limitations, Veeramuthuvel expressed confidence in the careful planning of each rover movement and the successful work being done.

Chandrayaan-3’s Pragyan rover continues its exploration of the lunar surface, overcoming obstacles and conducting scientific experiments under the guidance of the ISRO control room. Its progress so far has instilled confidence in the possibility of positive outcomes for this ambitious mission.