Today in History (August 24th, 79 CE)
On this day, in 79 CE, Mount Vesuvius in Italy erupted, destroying the ancient cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum, and the excavations of these sites in the mid-18th century precipitated the modern science of archaeology.
Summary of Today’s News
Chandrayaan-3
The Vikram lander from Chandrayaan-3 safely landed on the moon. And now, the Pragyan rover has also come out of the Vikram lander. The successful landing marked India as the fourth country to achieve a soft landing on the moon and the first to land at the South Pole. The rover has two payloads: the LASER Induced Breakdown Spectroscope (LIBS) and the Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS). LIBS will analyze the elemental composition and infer the mineralogy of the lunar surface, while APXS will determine the composition of lunar soil and rocks.
Artemis Accord
The Artemis Accord is a collaborative agreement led by the US for international space exploration, named after the Moon goddess Artemis. It builds on the Outer Space Treaty and aims to unite nations in peaceful exploration. Launched by the US State Department and NASA in October 2020, with seven partner countries, such as Canada, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, UAE, and the UK, the accord now has 26 signatory countries. For ISRO, joining offers technological opportunities and knowledge-sharing with NASA, advancing India’s space endeavors. The accord aims to place humans on the moon by 2025.
Lunar Polar Exploration Mission (LUPEX)
The Lunar Polar Exploration Mission (LUPEX) is a collaborative project between the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). Set for a 2025 launch, LUPEX aims to explore the moon’s potential for establishing a base, availability of water ice, and surface technologies. Developed by JAXA and ISRO, it includes instruments from NASA and ESA. Among LUPEX’s instruments are Permittivity and Thermo-physical investigation for Moon’s Aquatic Scout (PRATHIMA), aiming to detect water-ice mixed in lunar soil, and Lunar Electrostatic Dust Experiment (LEDEX), detecting charged dust particles and their behavior. The mission will provide insights into the lunar polar region, aiding future human exploration.
