Chandrayaan-3’s touchdown point on moon named 'Shiva Shakti'; Aug 23 is 'National Space Day'
On August 23, the Chandrayaan-3 lander touched down on the lunar surface
By Newsmeter Network Published on 26 Aug 2023 4:12 AM GMT
Bengaluru: Prime Minister Narendra Modi directly flew down to Bengaluru from Athens to felicitate ISRO scientists for the successful Chandrayaan-3 mission.
He announced to name the place where the lander 'Vikram' touched down on the lunar surface as "Shiva Shakti Point".
Terming the success of the Chandrayaan-3 mission as an 'extraordinary moment' in the history of India's India's space program, he said the place where the Chandrayaan-2 lander crash-landed on the Moon's surface in 2019 would be known as "Tiranga Point".
“August 23 would be celebrated as National Space Day”, a visibly emotional Prime Minister said while addressing the team ISRO at ISRO Telemetry Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC) here, as he lavishly praised them for their dedication and passion.
On August 23, the Chandrayaan-3 lander touched down on the lunar surface. ISRO Chairman S Somanath briefed him about the Chandrayaan-3 mission.
A large number of people, many of them holding aloft national flags, gathered outside the HAL Airport and Jalahalli Cross, which is close to ISTRAC, to greet the Prime Minister.
On Wednesday evening as the Lander Module of the Chandrayaan-3 mission successfully touched down on the lunar surface, Modi joined the ISRO team at Mission Operations Complex (MOX) at ISTRAC virtually from Johannesburg, where he was attending the 15th BRICS summit.
Modi had also flown down to Bengaluru on the night of September 6, 2019, to watch the planned touchdown of Chandrayaan-2 mission's 'Vikram' lander.
But in the early hours of September seven, barely minutes before it was slated to land, ISRO lost contact with the craft, just 2.1 km above the lunar surface.
Inputs from PTI
