THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: ISRO Chairman S Somanath said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's naming of the place where Vikram Lander of Chandrayaan-3 successfully landed on the moon as Shivashakti is not controversial. The country has the right to name the place where the Vikram lander landed. He said that many countries have named in this way before and there is no need for controversy in naming them. Somanath was talking to the media.

"Science and faith are two. Chandrayaan 3 is working perfectly. Got a lot of valuable information. The conclusions will be announced after the reviews by the scientists. Chandrayaan 3 mission is a hundred per cent success. Expect more information in the coming days. Scientific data from experimental instruments is now more important than images. Discussions about the Lupex lunar mission with Japan are ongoing. Aditya L1, the probe ready to study Sun has been docked with the launch vehicle. The launch date will be announced soon. The critical mission of the Gaganyaan project will also happen soon. The launch of GSLV and SSLV will also take place later,' Somanath said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared August 23 as National Space Day after the Chandrayaan-3 mission's Vikram lander successfully landed on the moon.

The announcement was made while Modi visited the scientists and technologists who managed the Chandrayaan mission at the ISRO Telemetry Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC) centre in Bengaluru to felicitate them.

The Prime Minister was in Johannesburg, South Africa when the Chandrayaan-3 mission reached its destination. After completing his visit to Greece, he left for Bengaluru. ISRO Chairman S Somanath welcomed the Prime Minister. His team shared the achievements of the Chandrayaan-3 mission with the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister said that the moment the moon touched down was one of the most inspiring moments of this century.

Why Shiva Shakti?

The Prime Minister also revealed the thought behind the name Shivashakti. Shiva has a determination for the welfare of mankind. 'Shakti' will strengthen us to fulfil that determination. This Shiva Shakti point on the Moon connects the Himalayas and Kanyakumari