Moon Monday
Moon Monday #199: Not the fault in our stars but certainly stressful faults on our Moon
Let’s study Moonquakes to not let them shake a Moonbase.
Chandrayaan
By Jatan Mehta | Coverage, with context, of India’s Chandrayaan program to explore the Moon.
Chandrayaan
Discussing India’s lunar exploration heading with Carnegie India (podcast)
I was a guest on Carnegie India’s podcast Interpreting India. In light of the recently approved Chandrayaan 4 sample return mission, we discuss for a good 45 minutes where India’s Moon exploration plans are heading, and what are the enablers and constraints on the increasingly complex road for
Moon Monday
Moon Monday #196: Confusion about lunar water and LUPEX, and papers plus mission updates
You can now follow my articles on some non-questionable social networks that also federate (interoperate): Flipboard, Mastodon and Bluesky. The hunt for water on the Moon continues US researchers find that permanently shadowed regions up to 77° latitude—which is outside the Moon’s south pole—could host surface and
Moon Monday
Moon Monday #194: On the approval of India’s Chandrayaan 4 sample return mission, and first look at Chang’e 6 samples
This week’s Moon Monday has not one but two feature stories! So much has been happening in lunar exploration this whole year that I’ve transitioned to writing deep dives more frequently so as to adequately capture and contextualize big updates. If you appreciate my efforts to bring you
Moon Monday
Moon Monday #190: On the varied importance of the Chandrayaan 3 rover, and more mission updates
Grab some tea, coffee, or beverage of your choice because this week’s Moon Monday is a sci-tech deep dive! 🌝 Chandrayaan 3 contributes to learning our Moon’s origin and evolution The first ever ground-based measurements of high-latitude lunar soil and rocks made by the Chandrayaan 3 rover’s Alpha
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’
Moon Monday
Moon Monday #183 and Indian Space Progress #17: The one where Chandrayaan and Gaganyaan converge
How will ISRO go from Chandrayaan 3 to an Indian on the Moon? Clarifying and laying down India’s plans for increasingly complex robotic lunar missions, where human spaceflight comes in, and what realistic timelines look like.
Moon Monday
Moon Monday #181: On South Korea’s lunar landing plan, national space agencies, an Indo-US gateway, and more
Newly forged KASA aims to land on Luna At long last, South Korea formed its space agency called the Korea Aerospace Administration (KASA) to consolidate and/or coordinate the country’s various space activities—which span space science research, rocket and spacecraft technology development, and private space activities. So far,
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
Indian Space Progress
Indian Space Progress #15: An ISRO-JAXA collaboration for the Moon, aiding Artemis, and more
In this month’s Indian Space Progress edition, I want to highlight how increasing independence in being able to plan and execute planetary missions can lead to uniquely impactful collaborations between organizations globally. India’s Chandrayaan program has been becoming incrementally indigenous, and the two stories below highlight its utility
Indian Space
Indian Space Progress #12: Doubling down on space telescopes, lunar exploration, and Earth observation
This month’s Indian Space Progress report is a science special. I hope you enjoy it! XPoSat gazes at cosmic objects from space On January 1, ISRO’s PSLV rocket launched India’s second space telescope called the X-ray Polarimetry Satellite, or XPoSat. While the country’s first space telescope,
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