Another first for India on moon’s south pole as sulphur presence, other elements confirmed
- ‘These in situ measurements confirm the presence of sulphur in the region unambiguously, something that was not feasible [before]’, India’s space agency said
- Chandrayaan-3 has captivated public attention since launching 6 weeks ago, and its successful touchdown last week came just days after a Russian lander crashed
India’s moon rover has confirmed the presence of sulphur on the lunar south pole, the country’s space agency said.
Last week, India became the first country to land a craft near the largely unexplored south pole, and just the fourth nation to land on the moon.
“The Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy [LIBS] instrument on board Chandrayaan-3 Rover has made the first-ever in situ measurements on the elemental composition of the lunar surface near the south pole,” the Indian Space Research Organisation [ISRO] said in a statement dated Monday.
“These in situ measurements confirm the presence of sulphur in the region unambiguously, something that was not feasible by the instruments on board the orbiters,” it said.
The spectrographic analysis also confirmed the presence of aluminium, calcium, iron, chromium and titanium on the lunar surface, ISRO added, with additional measurements showing the presence of manganese, silicon and oxygen.
The six-wheeled solar-powered rover Pragyan – “Wisdom” in Sanskrit – will amble around the relatively unmapped south pole and transmit images and scientific data over its two-week lifespan.