Following Chandrayaan-3 Success, ISRO Plans Mission To Send Indian Astronauts To Moon By 2040: S Somanath

Following the success of Chandrayaan-3, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is eyeing significant milestones, including sending Indian astronauts to the Moon by 2040.

Chairman S Somanath shared these goals, emphasising the Gaganyaan programme in an article, as reported by Indian Express.

The Gaganyaan initiative aims to launch a crew of two to three Indian astronauts into Low Earth Orbit (LEO) for up to three days before safely returning them to Indian waters.

Meanwhile, test pilots from the Indian Air Force are currently undergoing specific training in Bengaluru.

The first Gaganyaan mission will serve as a testing ground for critical technologies, including the human-rated LVM3 launch vehicle, an orbital module featuring a crew module and service module, and various life support systems.

Before the crewed mission, two identical uncrewed missions, along with air drop test, pad abort test, and test vehicle flights, are also scheduled.

It's also noteworthy that ISRO recently achieved a milestone with the TV-D1 mission, testing the crew escape system's capabilities.