Ahmedabad (Gujarat) [India], August 23 (ANI): Indian Air Force Group Captain and astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla on Sunday said the future of India’s space sector is “very bright” but challenging, stressing that achieving the country’s space ambitions will require sustained hard work, time and resources.
Speaking to ANI on the sidelines of National Space Day celebrations organised by the Space Applications Centre, Shukla said the occasion commemorates the successful landing of ISRO’s Chandrayaan-3 mission on the Moon’s south polar region on August 23, 2023.
“I am here for the National Space Day celebrations organised by the Space Applications Centre. We began celebrating this day following August 23, 2023, when ISRO successfully landed the Chandrayaan-3 mission on the Moon’s south pole. That was a momentous day for us, and we celebrate this occasion as National Space Day to commemorate it,” Shukla said.
He said the celebrations brought together children who participated in rocket competitions and rover challenges, along with presentations highlighting collaboration between the private and public sectors in the space domain.
“Children who took part in rocket competitions and rover challenges were present, along with many others eager to hear about the proceedings and the information being shared. Today’s Space Day celebration also featured presentations showcasing the collaboration between the private and public sectors in the space domain… I feel the future is very bright, yet also very challenging; it won’t happen on its own. It demands hard work, time, and resources–only then will these dreams become reality,” he further said.
India became the first country to land near the Moon’s southern polar region with the successful soft landing of the Chandrayaan-3 mission, marking a major milestone in the country’s space programme.
Chandrayaan-3’s successful landing on August 23, 2023, was a historic achievement for India and followed the country’s earlier lunar missions. The mission’s lander, Vikram, made a controlled soft landing on the lunar surface, while the Pragyan rover was deployed to conduct scientific experiments.
The achievement placed India among the select group of nations to successfully achieve a soft landing on the Moon and made it the first country to reach the lunar south polar region.
National Space Day is intended to commemorate that achievement while encouraging greater public interest in space science, technology and innovation. (ANI)
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