The Indian Space Research Organization’s (ISRO) historic Chandrayaan-3 moon mission continues to excite science enthusiasts. This time, a study of data from the Pragyan rover has shown the existence of an old crater with a 160 km circumference.
This crater may predate the South Pole-Aitken (SPA) basin, which is the largest and oldest impact basin on the lunar surface. The discovery was made using data examined by the Pragyan rover and the Vikram lander, both of which completed their missions on September 3, 2023, and were then put into sleep mode.
According to a paper titled “Chandrayaan-3 landing site evolution by South Pole-Aitken basin and other impact craters” that scientists at PRL Ahmedabad published, the Chandrayaan-3 mission made landfall (CH-3 landing site) inside a buried impact crater that is considerably older than the SPA basin, which is about 350 km from the rim of the South Pole-Aitken basin.
With the help of the optical high-resolution camera and Navcam on the Pragyan rover, ISRO has taken pictures of the “semi-circular, heavily degraded structure encompassed around the landing site.” It was allegedly covered by ejecta materials, or rubble, from the SPA basin and eleven other basins around it. It is currently regarded as one of the oldest structures on the moon.
The Chandrayaan-3 mission’s discoveries have improved global scientific comprehension of the moon. This might support future lunar expeditions, such as the 2027-scheduled Chandrayaan-4 mission.