Chandrayaan-3 Mission: The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has released the first observations from the Chandra’s Surface Thermophysical Experiment (ChaSTE) payload on Chandrayaan-3’s Vikram lander.
ChaSTE has measured the temperature profile of the lunar topsoil around the Moon’s south pole, ISRO said in a mission update. These scientific observations are expected to help scientists understand the thermal behaviour of the lunar surface.
According to ISRO, Chandrayaan-3 has produced the first temperature-depth profile of the Moon’s south pole.
Chandrayaan-3 Mission:
Here are the first observations from the ChaSTE payload onboard Vikram Lander.ChaSTE (Chandra’s Surface Thermophysical Experiment) measures the temperature profile of the lunar topsoil around the pole, to understand the thermal behaviour of the moon’s… pic.twitter.com/VZ1cjWHTnd
— ISRO (@isro) August 27, 2023
ISRO has released a graph which shows the variation of lunar surface temperature with depth. The probe recorded the temperature variations of the lunar surface and near-surface at various depths.
ChaSTE is equipped with a temperature probe which can penetrate into lunar soil up to a depth of 10 centimetres beneath the Moon’s surface. Not only can ChaSTE exhibit a controlled penetration mechanism, but is also fitted with 10 individual temperature sensors.
