ISRO brings back the Propulsion Module used in Chandrayaan-3

On Tuesday, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) announced the successful return of the propulsion module that was used in the Chandrayaan-3 mission. 

A propulsion module is a machine that creates the energy required to move a spacecraft through space. It played an important role in Chandrayaan-3’s historic lunar landing and has now safely returned to Earth’s orbit (a path followed by things in space).

On 23rd August 2023, India became the fourth country to land a vehicle on the surface of the Moon. The Propulsion module was responsible for carrying the Launcher close to the Moon. On reaching close to the Moon, it separated itself from the launcher and then it started to go around the Moon. It captured and sent information about the launcher back to ISRO. As 100 kg of fuel was left in it, ISRO decided to bring it back to the Earth’s orbit. 

It is an important achievement of India, as it marks the first time ISRO has recovered an object from the Moon’s orbit. This success shows that ISRO is getting ready for upcoming missions. They’re not just landing spacecraft on the Moon; they’re also figuring out a way to bring it back to Earth. ISRO is now closer to fulfilling PM Narendra Modi’s goal of sending an Indian astronaut to the Moon by the year 2040.