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India makes history as the first country to ever land on the moon’s South Pole

Home> News> World News

Published 21:38 23 Aug 2023 GMT+1

India makes history as the first country to ever land on the moon’s South Pole

People across the country have erupted in celebrations as the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft landed safely.

Stewart Perrie

Stewart Perrie

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India has written itself into the history books after becoming the first country to land on the moon's South Pole.

The Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft successfully touched down on the elusive part of our closest celestial object in the cosmos, sparking a wave of excitement in the most populated country.

Pictures show the team behind the legendary landing erupting in hugs and cheers when the historic moment happened.

India Prime Minister Narendra Modi said: "This moment is unforgettable. It is phenomenal. This is a victory cry of a new India.

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"India is now on the moon. India has reached the south pole of the moon — no other country has achieved that. We are witnessing history."

Indians across the country were fixated on their television screens as they watched the spacecraft get closer to its destination.

BIJU BORO/AFP via Getty Images

Physics student Jyothi said: "As a country, I think it's very important because although we have a very good space program, India is considered a very under-developed country.

"This is a big landmark, we have the potential, we have the talent, and now we're doing it."

The Guardian says Chandryaan-3's descent onto the moon was something to be marvelled at.

It had to slow down from 3,730 miles an hour to nearly zero during the final moments and had to turn 'from a horizontal to a vertical position'.

According to the ABC, this region is 'full of craters and deep trenches', making it difficult to land a spacecraft on it.

The spacecraft will spend its time on the south pole looking for frozen water.

A rover named Pragyaan (which is the Sanskrit word for wisdom) has been designed to 'take pictures, conduct experiments on the geology and the origins of the Earth, and investigate the presence of water ice'.

TAUSEEF MUSTAFA/AFP via Getty Images

India has become the fourth country to land on the moon, after the US, the former Soviet Union and China.

However the moon's most southern point has been elusive to us earthlings for decades.

NASA says this part of the moon is full of 'mystery, science and intrigue'.

Sounds juicy.

India's successful mission comes only days after Russia's attempt at landing on the south pole ended disastrously.

The Luna-25 spacecraft crashed into the moon after spinning out of control, according to Roscosmos, the country’s space agency.

"The apparatus moved into an unpredictable orbit and ceased to exist as a result of a collision with the surface of the moon," a statement from Roscosmos reads.

On Saturday (August 19), the space agency said they lost contact with Luna-25 after an 'abnormal situation' occurred where the spacecraft struggled in its pre-landing.

Featured Image Credit: SATISH BABU/AFP via Getty Images. ARUN SANKAR/AFP via Getty Images

Topics: Space, World News

Stewart Perrie
Stewart Perrie

Stewart Perrie is a Senior Journalist at LADbible. Stewart has covered the conflict in Syria for LADbible, interviewing a doctor on the front line, and has contributed to the hugely successful UOKM8 campaign. He is in charge of the LADbible Australia editorial content and social presence.

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@stewartperrie

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