Even as the scientists and staff at Mission Operations Complex broke into applause, the core team members thanked all those who had worked on the mission. Quietly and without jingoistic boasting of their stupendous achievement. And that is the most remarkable aspect of ISRO -- they let their work do the talking, notes Minnie Vaid, author of Those Magnificent Women And Their Flying Machines, ISRO's Mission to Mars.
Somanath thanked all those who prayed for the mission's success, and ISRO veterans like A S Kiran Kumar , the space agency's former chief.
The space strategist said that this shows that one should not take anything for granted in space exploration.
Film folk like Akshay Kumar, Chiranjeevi, Jr NTR and Sunny Deol congratulated the country and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on the historic achievement of Chandrayaan-3's landing on the Moon.
According to ISRO officials, Earth bound orbit is a phase during which the spacecraft will remain in the Earth's sphere of influence.
India is the first country to attempt a soft-landing on south pole of Moon's surface.
'It's vital that over the next 10 years, that India, the US and the Artemis Accords family of nations come together to ensure that we not only return humanity to the moon, but that we build the technology that will allow us stay there permanently.' 'And then go on to Mars.'
Minutes before making the announcement about losing communication with the 'Vikram' lander, ISRO Chairman K Sivan briefed the prime minister.
Nervous and anxious for sure but the city-headquartered space agency is cautiously optimistic of "Vikram" module's soft-landing on the Lunar surface planned in the early hours of Saturday.
Chandrayaan-3's success is a must for India's space ambitions; we can't afford to lose out. And for realising our space dreams, the Indian private sector must be encouraged because if we lose this race, the moon, Mars, and mineral-rich asteroids will already be crowded before we reach there.
Subramanian, 33, who was on Tuesday the toast of the astronomy world, managed what ISRO and NASA couldn't through his close examination of before and after images of the scheduled landing.
One spacecraft will be Indian Space Research Organisation's own Chandrayaan-2, while the other will be from India's first private moonshot Team Indus which is competing in the Google LunarXPrize challenge.
The Rs 978 crore mission, which has been rescheduled for Monday after scientists corrected the glitch in the rocket, will be launched at 2.43 p.m from the second launchpad at Satish Dhawan Space Centre, over 100 km from Chennai.
A satellite placed in the halo orbit around the first Lagrangian point (L1) of the Sun-Earth system has the major advantage of continuously viewing the Sun without any occultation/eclipses, the IIA said.
ISRO chairman K Sivan said all activities related to the third lunar mission -- Chandrayaan-3 -- were going on smoothly but its launch may shift to next year.
If the April launch of the Chandrayaan-2, the country's second mission to the Moon, is not possible, then the ISRO will aim for a launch by October.
He said the ISRO scientists have a very strong spirit of working and will not rest till the objective is met.
Veteran space scientist G Madhavan Nair said on Tuesday that Indian Space Research Organisation's unsuccessful bid to soft land on the moon is nothing to be alarmed about, and it would only enable the space agency master complex missions going forward.
Modi gave these directions during a meeting to review the preparedness of the Gaganyaan mission and the first demonstration flight of the crew escape system test vehicle scheduled for October 21.
'Vikram' with rover 'Pragyaan' housed inside is scheduled for a powered-descent between 1 am and 2 am on September 7, followed by its touchdown between 1.30 am and 2.30 am.
Sivan asserted that though Chandrayaan-2 did not go as per script, it will have no bearing with on the 'Gaganyaan' mission.
From massed band's 'Shankhnaad' to Navy's lilting 'Mission Chandrayaan', mellifluous tunes reverberated across the Raisina Hill in the heart of Delhi as India's rich heritage and towering accomplishments were celebrated during the Beating Retreat ceremony on Monday.
"The panel's report is awaited. The committee has been given a guideline to prepare the mission before the end of next year," a senior ISRO official said. "There is a good launch window in November".
The ISRO is aiming for a soft landing of the lander in the South Pole region of the moon where no country has gone so far.
China's National Space Administration landed the Chang'e 4 lunar probe at 10:26 am Beijing time on Thursday, in the South Pole-Aitken Basin which is an impact crater, China Central Television reported.
China's first moon rover has begun sending back photos, a day after the communist giant carried out the world's first lunar soft landing in nearly 40 years, making a huge advance in its ambitious space programme.
The six-wheeled solar-powered rover named Zhurong, resembling a blue butterfly and with a mass of 240 kg, slowly trundled off a ramp on the lander to hit the red, sandy soil of Mars, starting its journey to explore the fourth planet from the Sun.
The Chandrayaan-2 spacecraft weighing around 3,290 kg would orbit around the moon and perform the objectives of remote sensing the moon.
Contributors to Team Indus project will have names etched on an object going to space.
'Perhaps the government should explain how the same scientific temper, which authored a precise landing for Chandrayaan-3, finds the periodic table and the theory of evolution not good enough for inclusion in the educational curriculum,' asserts Shyam G Menon.
NASA said it is looking forward to explore the solar system with its Indian counterpart.
Here's some exclusive, behind-the-scenes footage of the moon mission's various components coming together.
The COVID-19 lockdown has hit several projects of the ISRO including Chandrayaan-3, which was scheduled to be launched in late 2020, and Gaganyaan, the country's first manned space mission.
ISRO hopes to put a crew on the moon, but it has to learn how to keep people alive and healthy in space first.
'I am extremely excited to be at the ISRO Centre in Bengaluru to witness the extraordinary moment in the history of India's space programme,' Modi tweeted earlier in the day.
'Till date, 90-95 per cent of the mission objectives have been accomplished' 'Future programmes will go as planned' After the moon landing mishap, K Sivan, chairman, Indian Space Research Organisation spoke to T E Narasimhan/Business Standard of the future and the mood among his scientists. Edited excerpts:
China's troubled moon rover Yutu or Jade Rabbit has come back to life from a troubled dormancy although experts are still trying to figure out the cause of its abnormality, officials said on Thursday.
Scientists also expressed the hope that any technical problem will be sorted out by ISRO, and the mission will be launched successfully.
The ISRO plans to send three Indians to space by 2022, an announcement made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his last Independence Day speech.
The teething issues concerning the launch of Chandrayaan 2 -- the second lunar mission of the Indian Space Research Organisation -- have been cleared.
