The first-ever assessment of the first-ever measurements of the plasma environment at the moon’s surface over the south polar region by the RAMBHA-LP payload aboard the Chandrayaan-3 lander indicates that plasma is relatively scarce there, ISRO said Thursday.
Meanwhile, the ILSA payload on the Chandrayaan 3 lander to study the moon’s seismic activity not only recorded the rover’s movements and other payloads, but also recorded what appears to be a natural occurrence on Aug. 26. “The source of this event is under investigation,” ISRO said.
ISRO also said the Lunar Seismic Activity (ILSA) payload instrument on Chandrayaan 3 Lander, the first Micro Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS) technology-based instrument on the moon, has been recording the movements of Rover and other payloads.
In addition, on August 26, 2023, it recorded an event that appears to be a natural event. An investigation is underway into the source of this event.
The Instrument for Lunar Seismic Activity (ILSA) payload on the Chandrayaan 3 Lander is the first instance of a Micro Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS) technology-based instrument on the moon. It recorded the vibrations that occur due to the movements of Rover and other payloads.
ILSA consists of a cluster of six high-sensitivity accelerometers, which are domestically manufactured using the Silicon Micromachining process. The core sensing element consists of a spring mass system with comb-structured electrodes. External vibrations cause a deflection of the spring resulting in a change in capacitance which is converted into voltage.
The primary purpose of ILSA is to measure ground vibrations generated by natural earthquakes, impacts and man-made events. The vibrations recorded during the rover’s navigation on August 25, 2023 are shown in the figure. In addition, an apparently natural event, recorded on August 26, 2023, is also shown. The source of this event is currently under investigation.
The ILSA payload was designed and realized at LEOS, Bangalore, with the support of private industries. The deployment mechanism for placing ILSA on the lunar surface was developed by URSC, Bengaluru.
“Radioanatomy of Moonbound Hypersensitive Ionosphere and Atmosphere – Langmuir Probe (RAMBHA-LP) payload aboard Chandrayaan-3 Lander has made measurements of the lunar surface plasma environment over the south polar region for the first time. Initial assessment indicates that the plasma near the lunar surface is relatively sparse,” ISRO said in a social media post. These quantitative measurements could potentially help mitigate the noise lunar plasma introduces into radio wave communications. They could also contribute to the improved designs for upcoming lunar visitors, ISRO said
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Updated: August 31, 2023, 9:12 PM IST
