Chandrayaan-3: Rover confirms presence of Sulfur in lunar surface; search on for Hydrogen

Detects presence of other minerals as expected

Chandrayaan-3-rover-rollout-video-isro

The Pragyan rover of Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) moon mission Chandrayaan-3 confirmed the presence of Sulfur (S) in the lunar surface near the south pole, the space agency said on Tuesday.

In a tweet, ISRO said the in-situ scientific experiments of the mission are being continued.

"Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscope (LIBS) instrument onboard the Rover unambiguously confirms the presence of Sulphur (S) in the lunar surface near the south pole, through first-ever in-situ measurements."

It also detected the presence of other minerals —Al, Ca, Fe, Cr, Ti, Mn, Si, and O—as expected, the agency said.

Search for Hydrogen (H) is underway, ISRO added.

In another tweet, that appeared on the X handle ISRO InSight, the rover confirmed that it is in good health. "Hello earthlings! This is #Chandrayaan3's Pragyan Rover. I hope you're doing well. I want to let everyone know that I'm on my way to uncover the secrets of the Moon 🌒. Me and my friend Vikram Lander are in touch. We're in good health. The best is coming soon...," the tweet read.

On Monday, ISRO said the rover was commanded to retrace its path after it came across a crater just metres ahead of its location on the lunar surface.