ISRO just put out a post on X that showed the Pragyan Rover making a crucial move to ensure it can continue its mission to study the lunar north pole.
The short video of the Pragyan Rover shows it rotating at a spot while searching for a safer route. A Lander Imager Camera captured the rotation.
ISRO posted a post comparing the rover with a child frolicking around on the Moon.
Why the Pragyan Rover had to be rotated
The lunar surface where ISRO’s Pragyan Rover is operating is treacherous, to say the least, and is filled with craters. The rover has come across some bigger ones about 4 meters wide.
A few days back, the ISRO team had commanded Pragyan Rover to reroute to ensure its safety after it detected the 4-meter enormous crater.
Given the compact size of the rover and its smaller wheels, if Pragyan fell into a crater, it would be tough to come out of it. Moreover, Pragyan has a lot of ground to cover. Letting it fall inside a cavity would defeat the purpose of the mission.
What has the Pragyan Rover found on the Moon
Although only a few days since the Pragyan Rover has been rugged at work on the Moon, it has already given ISRO and India a trove of valuable data. For example, it has discovered and confirmed the presence of Sulphur in the lunar soil.
ISRO on Thursday also said that a different payload onboard the Pragyan Rover had discovered the presence of Sulphur on the Moon, using a completely different method.
In a post on X, ISRO said the Alpha Particle X-ray Spectroscope (APXS) had detected Sulphur and other minor elements.
“This finding by Ch-3 compels scientists to develop fresh explanations for the source of Sulphur (S) in the area: intrinsic? Volcanic? Meteoritic?……?.” the post read.
This gives a double confirmation of the presence of Sulphur.
Besides that, the Pragyan Rover has also found traces of aluminum, oxygen, magnesium, titanium, chromium, iron, and several other minerals on the lunar surface.
These discoveries will not only lead to a better understanding of the lunar soil but also be vital information that will help humanity colonize the Moon or set up a forward base when the time is right.
