Chandrayaan-3: Payload ILSA records movements on lunar surface, appearing to be a natural one, says ISRO

Providing an update on Vikram lander and Pragyaan rover's activity on the lunar surface, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) said on Thursday that Instrument for the Lunar Seismic Activity (ILSA) payload on Chandrayaan 3 lander has recorded the movements of rover and other payloads.

Additionally, on August 26, 2023, the first micro electro mechanical systems technology-based instrument, ILSA has recorded an event, appearing to be a natural one, ISRO said on X, formerly Twitter.

"The source of this event is under investigation," the space agency added.



ILSA, deployed on the lander, recorded these sounds as part of the in-situ experiments on the moon.

The payload consists of a cluster of six high-sensitivity accelerometers, which are indigenously fabricated using the Silicon Micromachining process.

"The core sensing element consists of a spring-mass system with comb-structured electrodes. External vibrations lead to a deflection of the spring, resulting in a change in capacitance which is converted into voltage," ISRO explained.

Further, ILSA's main objective is to measure vibrations on the ground which are generated by natural quakes, impacts, and artificial events.

"The vibrations recorded during the rover's navigation on August 25, 2023, are depicted in the figure. Additionally, an event, seemingly natural, recorded on August 26, 2023, is also shown. The source of this event is currently under investigation," ISRO said in a statement.

Similar to the other payloads installed in Chandrayaan-3, the ILSA payload was designed and realised at LEOS, Bangalore, in association with private industries. Meanwhile, the deployment mechanism for placing ILSA on the moon's surface was developed by URSC, Bengaluru.

Earlier on Thursday, ISRO confirmed that the RAMBHA-LP, a payload attached to the lander module Vikram, which is on the lunar surface, of the Chandrayaan-3 mission, has made the first-ever measurements of the near-surface Lunar plasma environment over the south polar region.

Taking to social media platform X, ISRO said, "Radio Anatomy of Moon Bound Hypersensitive Ionosphere and Atmosphere - Langmuir Probe (RAMBHA-LP) payload onboard Chandrayaan-3 Lander has made first-ever measurements of the near-surface Lunar plasma environment over the south polar region."

"The initial assessment indicates that the plasma near the lunar surface is relatively sparse," ISRO wrote on X.