Chandrayaan-3 Lands on the Moon's South Pole

On August 23, 2023, ISRO's Chandrayaan-3 mission successfully soft-landed the Vikram lander and Pragyan rover near the Moon's south pole — making India the fourth nation to achieve a lunar soft landing (after the Soviet Union, the United States, and China) and the first to land in the south polar region. The mission came just four years after Chandrayaan-2's lander crashed during its descent. The Pragyan rover confirmed the presence of sulphur near the south pole and measured temperature variations on the lunar surface. India's achievement was watched by hundreds of millions on live television and sparked national celebrations. The south pole landing was particularly significant because the region's permanently shadowed craters are believed to contain water ice — a critical resource for future human lunar bases. ISRO accomplished the mission for approximately $75 million, reinforcing India's reputation for frugal yet effective space engineering.