Chandrayaans ChaSTE takes the moon’s temperature

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Overview of ChaSTE Experiment

Chandra’s Surface Thermophysical Experiment (ChaSTE) is the first instrument to measure temperatures in situ near the moon’s south pole.
Part of the Vikram lander on Chandrayaan-3, which successfully landed on August 23, 2023.
A thermal probe that penetrates the lunar soil and records temperature variations.
Findings suggest water ice is more prevalent on the moon than previously expected.

Relevance : GS 3(Science and Technology)

The probe is equipped with 10 temperature sensors spaced 1 cm apart along its length.
Uses a rotation-based deployment mechanism, different from previous hammering-based probes.
Once deployed, the probe measures temperature variations at different depths.
Penetrated up to 10 cm into the lunar soil, recording data until September 2, 2023.

Philae Lander (ESA, 2014, Comet 67P):
- Attempted to deploy MUPUS (Multi-Purpose Sensors for Surface and Subsurface Science).
- Failed due to bouncing on landing, preventing deployment.
InSight Lander (NASA, 2018, Mars):
- Carried Heat Flow and Physical Properties Package (HP3) with a self-hammering probe (“The Mole”).
- Low soil friction prevented it from reaching the target depth of 5 m.
- Despite a year-long effort, temperature sensors failed to gather meaningful data.

Instead of a hammering mechanism like MUPUS and HP3, ChaSTE used a rotating device to push into the soil.
Rotation-based deployment provided better soil penetration.
Successfully measured in situ lunar temperature, a feat no previous mission accomplished.

Validates the presence of water ice in the lunar south pole region.
Data will be crucial for future lunar missions, especially those planning human colonization.
Success strengthens India’s lunar exploration capabilities and provides insights into planetary thermophysical properties.
May influence future deep-space exploration technologies, improving probe deployment mechanisms.