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Chitchat India claims its Moon Lander is ‘Sleeping’ no more Signal after landing lol

Pinkieslut

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India's moon lander and rover didn't wake up despite high hopes​

Sonam Sheth and Jenny McGrath; edited by Jessica Orwig
Sep 22, 2023, 7:00 PM ET

Image of the rover on board India's moon lander.
India's moon rover, Pragyaan, made history as the first to explore the lunar south pole. Indian Space Research Organization
  • India's moon rover and lander was set to wake up after a nearly month-long nap.
  • Despite high hopes, the lander and rover didn't respond to a wake-up message.
  • This could mean the end of a successful mission for the Vikram lander and Pragyan rover.
Despite high hopes, two historic robots remain fast asleep near the moon's south pole, according to the Indian Space Research Organization.

India's Chandrayaan-3 moon lander and its adorable sidekick lunar rover were set to wake up around September 22. The ISRO landed them on the moon in a historic first in August.

Both ISRO's Vikram lander and Pragyan rover run on solar power. Therefore, they need sunlight to charge their batteries and operate their scientific instruments.

They went to sleep in early September when night set in and their batteries drained. The next sunrise took place on September 22. ISRO hoped the solar panels would recharge and reawaken the spacecraft.

However, they haven't responded to mission control's message.

In late August, mission operations director M. Srikanth told The Times of India the team was confident the lander and rover would return to life after sunrise. "If that happens, that will be a bonus and in case that cannot be achieved, the mission is still complete," he said.

Despite Srikanth's optimism, it was always a long shot that the two robots would withstand the moon's elements. Nighttime temperatures on the moon can dip to as low as -334 degrees Fahrenheit, according to NASA. The lander and rover weren't built to withstand such cold, The New York Times reports.

Chandrayaan-3 mission complete

India's Chandrayaan-3 Vikram lander on the moon.ISRO
Mission control will continue to send messages to the spacecraft. Even if ISRO's lunar lander and rover don't wake up, the robots have already done what they were designed to do — explore the lunar south pole region for the first 14 days after touchdown.

Within just those two weeks, the two robots made some important scientific discoveries. For example, the moon rover confirmed the presence of sulfur in the lunar south pole region.

Moreover, preliminary analyses suggested the presence of aluminum, calcium, iron, chromium, titanium, and a possible moonquake.

India is the fourth country — after the US, Russia, and China — to land on the moon, and the first to ever land near the lunar south pole.

The lunar south pole region is of particular interest because it contains water ice. Water ice, or H2O, could eventually be mined and broken down into oxygen for breathing as well as hydrogen and oxygen for rocket fuel.

India's lunar lander and rover were the first to study the south pole region up-close and sample it directly. Scientists and companies who want to build a base on the moon have watched the mission with great interest.
 

Hightech88

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Despite Srikanth's optimism, it was always a long shot that the two robots would withstand the moon's elements. Nighttime temperatures on the moon can dip to as low as -334 degrees Fahrenheit, according to NASA. The lander and rover weren't built to withstand such cold, The New York Times reports.
Assuming it uses lithium batteries, the operating range is only -20Deg C to +60DegC

At -334 degrees F or -200 Deg C which even farking colder than liquid nitrogen , likely the batteries chwee already, LOL.

Ref: https://www.theweek.in/news/sci-tec...he-moon-will-pragyan-rover-wake-up-again.html
" No specific conclusion can still be given on whether Pragyan will ever work again or not. The Pragyan rover is a small, 26-kilogram robot that is about 36 inches long. It has a rectangular chassis with a solar array that can generate 50 watts of power. “The rover has a small battery that helps it deploy its solar array, but, after that, it runs solely on solar power. The rover’s electric motor makes maximum torque as soon as it starts to turn, which helps it move around on the lunar surface,” explained space expert Girish Linganna.

As per the space expert, lithium ion batteries are most commonly used for space applications because of their high energy density, a long cycle life and good performance at low temperatures. The capacity of the rover battery is 10 Ampere-hour (Ah). It is enough to meet the mission’s primary objective of carrying out scientific observations for one lunar day.

The solar array is a group of solar panels which can convert sunlight into 50 watts of electrical energy. “The Pragyan rover has a small battery that helps it deploy its solar array. This means that the battery provides the initial power needed to open the solar array. Once the solar array is deployed, it can generate its own power and the battery is no longer needed,” Linganna added.

Normally, a capacity of 20-40 Ah in the lithium ion batteries on earth would be sufficient to store the energy generated by a 50-watt solar panel. But in space, there are restrictions on battery capacity. However, compared to lead-acid batteries, lithium ion batteries have a lighter weight and a longer lifespan. The exact capacity of the battery needed will depend on the specific application. If a device is needed to be powered for a long period of time, it will need a larger battery. “If only powering the device for short periods of time is required, a smaller battery will be sufficient,” Linganna said.

Experts do point out that lithium ion batteries are prone to thermal runaway—a condition in which the battery’s temperature rapidly increases and can lead to a fire or explosion. This is a major safety concern in space, where there is no way to extinguish a fire or escape from the spacecraft. Also lithium ion batteries are sensitive to radiation, which can damage the battery’s internal components and reduce its lifespan. Space is a highly radioactive environment, so lithium ion batteries would need to be protected from radiation damage.

Low-temperature performance of lithium ion batteries is still limited by several factors, such as increased internal resistance, decreased electrolyte conductivity, reduced electrode kinetics and possible formation of lithium plating. Therefore, lithium ion batteries need to be specially designed and modified to work in the extremely cold environment of the moon, which can reach as low as -173°C at night.

Experts have time and again proposed or implemented methods to improve the low-temperature performance of lithium ion batteries such as using additives, solvents, or salts that can lower the freezing point and increase the conductivity of the electrolyte, applying surface or interface modifications to the electrodes to enhance the charge transfer and reduce the polarisation, incorporating heating elements or thermal insulation materials to maintain a suitable temperature range for battery operation and optimising the battery structure and configuration to reduce the internal resistance and improve the power output.

These methods can help lithium ion batteries work in sub-zero temperatures of the moon, but they also have some drawbacks, such as increasing the complexity and weight of the battery system. India currently lacks the technology to create electronic circuits and components capable of withstanding the extreme cold temperatures of the moon. Therefore, more research and development is needed to find the optimal balance between performance, safety and reliability for lunar missions.

“Very elaborate studies were done during the period 2010-12 itself to select proper components, wires, PCB materials, soldering procedure, solar panel construct, sleep wake up circuit and its survival ability in long cold, wheels lubrication, battery selection and power system configuration for system survival ability without battery etc. by a select committee in a campaign mode. Systems also underwent tests,” said Mylswamy Annadurai, popularly known as the ‘Moon Man of India’.

“So I have good confidence that rover could be able to wake up,” he said."
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Loofydralb

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Hahaha
HHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHA!!!!

I think the eqpt failed because they didn't program it to use the toilet, just like the people who sent them.
 
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