Indian scientists to take another shot at moon

Bengaluru - The Chandrayaan-2 mission in September successfully deployed a lunar orbiter that relays scientific data back to earth.

India has approved its third lunar mission months after its last one failed to successfully land on the moon, its space agency said on Wednesday, the latest effort in its ambitions to become a low-cost space power.
The Chandrayaan-3 mission will have a lander and a rover, but not an orbiter, Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) chairman K. Sivan told reporters at its headquarters in Bengaluru.
The Chandrayaan-2 mission in September successfully deployed a lunar orbiter that relays scientific data back to earth, but was unable to place a rover on the lunar surface after a "hard" landing.
Sivan also said Isro was making "good progress" for its human space-flight mission Gaganyaan slated for late 2021, adding that four astronauts had been picked for training, which will be planned later this month.

• India