The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has shared intriguing insights regarding the Chandrayaan-3 mission, specifically focusing on the Vikram lander’s successful landing near the Moon’s south pole on August 23, 2023. During the descent stage and landing process, the mission resulted in the ejection of a significant amount of lunar surficial epi regolith material, leading to the formation of a distinctive reflectance anomaly known as an ‘ejecta halo.’
The study, conducted by ISRO, involved a detailed comparison of high-resolution panchromatic imagery captured by the Orbiter High-Resolution Camera (OHRC) of the Chandrayaan-2 orbiter. These images were obtained shortly before and after the Vikram lander’s landing event, allowing scientists to thoroughly characterize the ‘ejecta halo.’ This phenomenon manifests as an irregularly shaped, bright patch encircling the lander’s touchdown site.
By mapping and categorizing the uncorrelated pixels within the ‘ejecta halo,’ researchers estimated that approximately 108.4 square meters of lunar epi regolith were covered by the displaced ejecta resulting from the Vikram lander’s landing sequence. Furthermore, empirical relations were employed to approximate that roughly 2.06 tonnes of lunar epi regolith material were ejected due to the landing event.
