THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that the successful soft landing of Chandrayaan 3 is a brilliant chapter in the history of Indian space research. Chandrayaan 3 soft-landed today after orbiting the moon for more than a month. With this, the country's third lunar exploration mission has crossed its first important milestone.

Chandrayaan-3 reached the doorstep of the moon after covering hundreds of thousands of kilometres in its 40-day-long journey. The Vikram lander began its historic mission at 5.45 pm Indian time. At 6.04 pm, the lander began its slow descent on the south pole of the moon.

The lander was alone in the gruelling tests on the lunar surface that lasted a minimum of 17 minutes. Engines were ignited at the correct altitude at the correct time. The lander also managed to use its fuel in the right quantity. Before landing, Vikram lander scanned the lunar surface to find the hills and pits.

India is on top of the world as the Vikram lander touched the lunar surface at 6.04 pm after surviving all the whirlwinds. The rover will come out from the lander and roll across the lunar soil. The fourteen days and nights on earth will be only day on the moon. It will be a testing time for the rover.