US Artemis
Moon Monday #206: The state of global lunar exploration in 2024
Plus, my experience at the Galaxy Forum in Wenchang, China to that end.
Articles
By Jatan Mehta | Dives into lunar exploration, space technology, Indian space, planetary science, and more.
Articles
On celebrating Chandrayaan 3’s Moon landing, or that of Apollo
Many readers have asked me this week if I plan on blogging something today for the anniversary of Chandrayaan 3’s Moon landing, which India now celebrates as National Space Day. The answer is the same as what I do for Apollo anniversaries: Nothing. Don’t get me wrong. I’
Articles
Mission Director of India’s Chandrayaan 1 lunar orbiter has passed away
Today (June 14), Srinivasa Hegde, Mission Director of India’s first lunar orbiter Chandrayaan 1, passed away. Among its many unique feats, Chandrayaan 1 discovered water on the Moon, which encouraged many nations worldwide to explore our cosmic neighbor, and also catalyzed NASA—a key partner on the mission—to
Japan and Selene
Welcome to the era of precision Moon landings
Japan’s SLIM lander has sparked a new era of precision landings, with big implications for lunar science and exploration
Articles
How engineers test Moon landers on Earth
Until a spacecraft is aloft, engineers never really know if their testing regime was appropriate.
Articles
Why explore our Moon
And how we’re going back like never before.
Articles
The engineer who played a key role in Chandrayaan 3’s triumphant touchdown on the Moon
Kalpana Kalahasti, the Associate Project Director of ISRO’s Chandrayaan 3 mission, has been featured in Nature’s 10 most notable people of the year, owing to her crucial role in ensuring India’s triumphant touchdown on the Moon. I spoke to her to highlight her team’s approach to
Articles
A worrisome report on safety issues at SpaceX
I’d like to bring your attention to a worrying report on SpaceX’s safety issues as published yesterday by Reuters based on what looks like a comprehensive investigation. The whole article is worth a read but I’m excerpting below some notable parts that either need to be taken
Articles
The New York Times continues to misrepresent Indian space
The New York Times recently highlighted some emerging Indian space startups with an online & print article. It was not only widely read—seeing that it’s published by one of the world’s most-consumed publications—but also widely shared by the startups mentioned in the piece and related folks
Articles
How Chandrayaan 3 made its historic touchdown on our Moon
On August 23 at 12:33 UTC, India’s Chandrayaan 3 robotic lander touched down on the Moon near its south pole at 69.37°S, 32.32°E. The triumphant touchdown made India only the fourth country to achieve the feat of a soft lunar landing, following the former
Articles
Will Chandrayaan 3 hop after landing?
Sep 4, 2023 edit: It hopped! India’s Chandrayaan 3 lander is on its way to the Moon as we speak, aiming for a graceful touchdown near the lunar south pole on August 23. In a pre-launch interview, popular Indian YouTuber Gareeb Scientist asked an interesting question to ISRO Chief
ISRO Chandrayaan
India aims for the Moon with launch of Chandrayaan 3
The ambitious mission comes as India signs the US-led Artemis Accords to shape future global lunar activities.