Chennai/IBNS/UNI: Marking yet another milestone in its third Moon mission, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Friday said the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft has covered about two-thirds of the distance to the Earth's satellite.

The Lunar Orbit Injection (LOI) of the spacecraft is set for Aug 5 around 1900 hrs, ISRO tweeted.

After the successful trans-lunar injection (TLI) on Aug 1, the spacecraft is now on a lunar transfer trajectory, heading towards the Moon’s vicinity.

The Indian space agency had on Aug 1 at midnight successfully injected the Chandrayaan-3 into the translunar orbit after completing five orbit-raising maneuvers ever since its launch on July 14.

"A successful perigee-firing performed at ISTRAC, ISRO has injected the spacecraft into the translunar orbit. Next stop: the Moon," ISRO said, posting a photo of the moon.

As it arrives at the moon, the next Lunar-Orbit Insertion (LOI) is planned for Aug 5, 2023, ISRO said.

After injection into the Lunar orbit, the spacecraft's orbit will be further maneuvered for the soft landing on Aug 23 evening to explore the hitherto unexplored south polar region of the Moon.

The LOI, scheduled for Saturday will mark the beginning of the lunar-centric phase during which the spacecraft will orbit the Moon four times, getting progressively further closer to the lunar surface with each orbit.

The highly anticipated soft landing will see the lander separate from the propulsion module and attempt a gentle touchdown near the southern polar region of the Moon.

This maneuver requires precise braking techniques to ensure a safe landing
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Prior to the landing attempt, ISRO will conduct thorough imaging of the landing site region to identify safe zones, free of hazards and potential obstacles.