Tamil Nadu Has More Reasons To Cheer If Chandrayaan-3 Succeeds As The State Gave Mission Its Soil

If ISRO's Chandrayaan-3 mission succeeds this evening, one state will cheer a little louder than the others.

ISRO

That state is Tamil Nadu, and the reason is quite unique.

It is not just because the state's sons of the soil' ¨C former President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, Chandrayaan-2 Mission Director Mayilsamy Annadurai, and Chandrayaan-3 Project Director Veeramuthuvel P ¨C have contributed significantly to ISRO missions but also that the state has quite literally contributed its own soil to the mission.

Properties of Nammakal soil similar to soil on Moon

Interestingly, the soil found in Tamil Nadu is similar to that of the soil present on the lunar surface, especially on the southern pole (of the Moon).

Since 2012, Namakkal, which is about 400 km from state capital Chennai, has supplied soil to ISRO for testing for the Chandrayaan Mission capability.

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This has enabled ISRO to test and refine the ability of the lander module to soft land on the surface of the Moon, given that the properties of the Namakkal soil are similar.

This is the third time Tamil Nadu has supplied the necessary soil to the Bengaluru headquartered space agency to perform the tests for its ambitious Moon missions.

The required soil was available in abundance in the Namakkal area, which, according to the Director of Geology Department of Periyar University, Professor S Anbazhagan, enabled them to rise to the occasion when the need arose for ISRO.

"We have been engaged in conducting research in geology. Tamil Nadu has the kind of soil that is present on the lunar surface, particularly that which is very similar to the soil present at the southern pole (of the Moon). The lunar surface has 'Anorthosite' (a type of intrusive igneous rock) type of soil," he said.

He added, talking to PTI, "We have been sending the soil to ISRO soon after it announced the Moon exploration programme."

About 50 tonnes of soil sent to ISRO

In the Chandrayaan-2 mission, it was planned that a rover would come out of the lander module and crawl on the surface of the Moon. This was why it was necessary to undertake tests in the process.

"About 50 tonnes of soil were sent to ISRO, which was similar to the kind of soil present on the lunar surface," Anbazhagan, who specialises in remote sensing and groundwater exploration at the university in Salem, said.

After undertaking various tests, scientists at ISRO confirmed that the soil available in the Namakkal area matched with that of the lunar surface, he added.

Vying to become the first country to reach Moon's south polar region

The Chandrayaan-3 mission will attempt a soft landing on August 23 at 6.04 PM IST. Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) developed the entire mission, serving as a follow-up to Chandrayaan-2, which could not meet its objectives.

ISRO

The space agency will attempt a soft-landing of the Chandrayaan-3 on Moon's south pole, a region considered particularly interesting due to potential water ice deposits.

A successful soft landing on the Moon will make India the fourth country in the world to achieve the feat after the United States, Russia, and China. Besides, India will become the first country to reach Moon's south polar region.

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