The LUPEX mission, slated for 2026 or later, would ship an uncrewed lunar lander and rover to discover the south pole area of the Moon.
The Lunar Polar Exploration Mission (LUPEX), dubbed Chandrayaan-4, is a collaborative lunar mission by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). The LUPEX mission, slated for 2026 or later, would ship an uncrewed lunar lander and rover to discover the south pole area of the Moon.
JAXA is probably going to supply the under-development H3 launch automobile and the rover, whereas ISRO shall be offering the lander.
The principal goal of the Lunar Polar Exploration Mission or Chandrayaan-4 shall be to discover the presence of water within the lunar south pole. LUPEX will even discover the completely shaded polar area of the Moon, including one other layer of complexity to the operation. It will search to scope the area for the chance of finding a long-term station on the Moon.
Meanwhile, ISRO Chairman S Somanath stated that the Vikram lander of the Chandrayaan-3 mission is “happily sleeping on the Moon” after doing its “job very well”. Somanath further hinted that although ISRO will persist in its endeavors to reestablish communication with the lander, the prospects of reawakening it appear slim.
“No alerts have been obtained from them. Efforts to determine contact will proceed,” Somnath said. “Maybe if it needs to get up, let it get up. Until then, we’ll wait.”
The ISRO chief said that the lander Vikram had executed its duties admirably in the course of the lunar day, which is equal to 14 Earth days, as per its programmed schedule.
