Modi hails first landing on Moon's south pole as 'success for humanity'

Narendra Modi has declared victory in a new space race as India became the first country to reach the Moon’s unchartered south pole.

“This moment is unforgettable. It is phenomenal. This is a victory cry of a new India,” the Indian prime minister said as the Vikram Lander touched down in search of frozen water on the Chandrayaan-3 mission.

The successful landing means India joins an elite club of countries to reach the Moon after the former Soviet Union, the US and China.

It comes just days after Russia’s Luna-25 craft crash-landed before it could reach the Moon’s south pole, in a blow to the prestige of the Roscosmos space agency and ambitious plans to build a base on the planet.

The US hopes to land on the Moon in 2025 as part of the Artemis 3 mission, sending astronauts onto its surface for the first time since 1972, and is also planning a base.

‘Success belongs to all of humanity’

India, however, are the first to reach the milestone of the south pole, and all on a shoestring $50 million budget compared with rivals.

“This success belongs to all of humanity and it will help Moon missions by other countries in the future,” Mr Modi said in a video message

“I am confident that all countries in the world including those from the global south are capable of achieving such feats. We can all aspire to the Moon and beyond.”

India’s lander carried a solar-powered rover, Pragyaan, which will explore the south pole and send data back to Earth over the next fortnight as it searches for ice.

If this proves possible to extract, it could be converted into drinking water or oxygen for astronauts, or broken down to provide rocket fuel.

India, which has firmly established itself in the latest space race, previously discovered water molecules and an atmosphere on the Moon in 2008.

Applause and cheers rang out throughout the control room as the spacecraft slowly descended to the Moon’s surface, shutting off its engines and settling on the lunar surface just after 1.30pm BST.

Millions of people across India watched a live broadcast of the landing, with schools staying open for an extra hour in the evening for viewings.

The descent is known as the “15 minutes of terror” owing to the uneven, crater-filled terrain the craft had to reach. When it touched down successfully, residents were seen dancing in the streets and bursting crackers in cities and towns across India.

Prayers have been held in temples, churches, and mosques throughout the country for the success of the Chandrayaan-3 mission, which means “Mooncraft” in Sanskrit.

“India has conquered the moon. No one can stop us from becoming the global leader,” said Rakesh Sharma, a Delhi local.

Former Indian space agency chief K Sivan said the team had attempted to draw lessons from the failure of Chandrayaan-2, which saw its lander crash in 2019.

“I am really excited... have been waiting for this moment for a long time,” Mr Sivan, who broke down when the previous mission ended in disaster and was comforted by Mr Modi.

“These adjustments reflect a more robust system design, fostering optimism for a positive outcome. We’ve tackled issues with the thrusters, guiding system, and control system.”

Further measures were taken to reinforce its legs for higher-velocity landings, he added.

Mallikarjun Kharge, president of the Indian National Congress party, claimed India had displayed its “scientific prowess to the world”.

He continued: “We are deeply indebted to the remarkable hard work, unparalleled ingenuity and unflinching dedication of our scientists, space engineers, researchers and everyone involved in making this mission a triumph.”

Chandrayaan-3 launched in July and has been repeatedly orbiting Earth to build up the speed for its journey.

Astrobotic Technology, a US-based company that works with Nasa, also plans to deliver a rover to the south pole to measure water resources next year.

China has also planned a mission to the region. Nasa chief, Bill Nelson, warned this year that it could seek to claim the area as its own.

04:21 PM BST

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Thanks for following our coverage of India’s successful attempt to land on the Moon’s south pole.

03:38 PM BST

Nasa congratulates Indian counterparts

The head of Nasa has sent his congratulations to India’s space agency after it successfully landed on the Moon’s south pole.

Bill Nelson wrote on social media: “Congratulations Isro on your successful Chandrayaan-3 lunar South Pole landing.

“And congratulations to India on being the fourth country to successfully soft-land a spacecraft on the Moon. We’re glad to be your partner on this mission.”

03:13 PM BST

How the Moon mission unfolded

03:10 PM BST

Pictured: Space agency boss says 'India is on the Moon'

02:50 PM BST

Lunar mission 'is inspiring new generation of dreamers'

India has “scale[d]“ new heights as it became the fourth country to land on the surface of the Moon, an Indian MP has said.

Rahul Gandhi wrote on social media: “Chandrayaan-3’s soft landing on the uncharted lunar South Pole is the result of decades of tremendous ingenuity and hard work by our scientific community.

“Since 1962, India’s space programme has continued to scale new heights and inspire generations of young dreamers.”

02:46 PM BST

Mission director: Moon landing was 'flawless'

Chandrayaan-3’s project director has said the team “flawlessly” landed its spacecraft on the Moon earlier this afternoon.

P Veeramuthuvel said: “It’s a great  moment of happiness. On behalf of the team it gives me immense satisfaction on achieving this goal.

“The entire mission operations, right from launch to landing, happened flawlessly as per the time line.”

It comes a few days after Russia’s Luna-25 craft crashed into the surface of the Moon in its first lunar mission in almost 50 years.

02:27 PM BST

Watch: The moment Chandrayaan-3 lands on the Moon

02:24 PM BST

'The world has seen India's scientific prowess'

The president of one of India’s major political parties says the Moon landing has shown the country’s “scientific prowess to the world”.

Mallikarjun Kharge, of the Indian National Congress, said: “The success of Chandrayaan-3 is the collective success of every Indian.

“We are deeply indebted to the remarkable hard work, unparalleled ingenuity and unflinching dedication of our scientists, space engineers, researchers and everyone involved in making this mission a triumph for India.

“Today, through the Chandrayaan-3, we have displayed our scientific prowess to the world.”

02:18 PM BST

Pictures: Celebrations as Chandrayaan-3 lands on Moon

02:01 PM BST

'Historic day for India'

02:00 PM BST

'India is becoming a big player in space missions'

India is becoming a “bigger player” in space missions after landing a rover on the Moon’s surface, a British academic has said.

Dr Ian Whittaker, a physics professor at Nottingham Trent University, said: “It is amazing to see that India have managed a soft lunar landing on only their second attempt.

“It indicates great things for future missions in the Chandrayaan series, and means they become a bigger player on cooperative missions in the future.

“Indian schoolchildren will have all watched the landing in schools. It is really seeing science in action and will inspire a new generation of space scientists and researchers.”

01:56 PM BST

Reactions pour in as India reaches Moon

Narendra Modi hailed a “victory cry of a new India” from the BRICS summit following India’s successful Moon landing.

S. Somanath, chief of the Indian Space Research Organisation, said simply: “India is on the Moon.”

01:45 PM BST

Pictures: Chandrayaan-3 makes 'soft landing' at the Moon's south pole

01:44 PM BST

Modi: 'We can all aspire to the Moon and beyond'

Narendra Modi, the Indian prime minister, has said India’s successful Moon landing “belongs to all of humanity”.

He said: “This success belongs to all of humanity and it will help Moon missions by other countries in the future.

“I am confident that all countries in the world including those from the global south are capable of acheiving such feats.

“We can all aspire to the Moon and beyond.”

01:41 PM BST

Pictured: Modi waves Indian flag in delight after Moon landing

01:39 PM BST

Indian space organisation hails successful mission

01:34 PM BST

India becomes the first country to reach south pole

Chandrayaan-3 has reached the Moon’s surface, making India the first country to reach the Moon’s south pole.

Narendra Modi, the Indian prime minister, is pictured waving an Indian flag in delight as applause and cheers ring out among the assembled scientists and engineers.

01:32 PM BST

150 metres to go

Chandrayaan-3 is now just 150 metres from the Moon surface, with applause ringing out as it enters the second phase of its descent.

Just two engines are being fired now.

01:30 PM BST

Lander just 800m from making history

Applause rings out in the control room as the lander continues its descent, and is now just 800 metres from the surface of the Moon.

01:29 PM BST

India just a few kilometres from Moon's surface

India is now just 2.6km away from the Moon’s surface, according to its ground control.

01:24 PM BST

Ten minutes until touchdown

India’s lander is due to touch down on the Moon imminently in the next ten minutes, having covered more than half of its journey to the lunar surface.

01:16 PM BST

The lander at the heart of India's space mission

The Vikram Lander, which will attempt a “soft landing” on the Moon, is named after the founder of the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro), Vikram Sarabhai.

It is carrying in its belly 26kg rover called Pragyaan, the Sanskrit word for wisdom, which will search for water deposits.

01:13 PM BST

Ramaphosa: Moon landing will be 'historic'

South Africa’s president Cyril Ramaphosa has expressed confidence in the Chandrayaan-3 mission as India seeks to become the fourth country to reach the Moon.

Posting a picture with Narendra Modi, the Indian prime minister, he said: “South Africa and India enjoy 30 years of bilateral relations between characterised by strong people-to-people and trade links.

“We discussed co-operation in science and technology.

“We also congratulated India on the imminent and historic landing of the Chandrayaan 3 on the south side of the moon.”

01:06 PM BST

Pictured: Indian schoolchildren pray for spacecraft as countdown continues

01:01 PM BST

What happened on India's last lunar mission?

India’s previous attempt to land a spacecraft near the moon’s little-explored south pole ended in disaster in 2019.

It entered the lunar orbit but lost touch with its lander, which crashed while as it made its final descent to release a rover searching for signs of water.

The accident was caused by a software glitch, according to a failure analysis report submitted to India’s ISRO space agency.

12:59 PM BST

Chandrayaan-3 trajectory

12:51 PM BST

Are there Moon landings taking place in the future?

Nasa’s Artemis 3 programme is set to return humans to the Moon in 2025, marking the first crewed lunar mission in more than 50 years.

Artemis 1 flew an uncrewed spacecraft around the Moon in 2022, while Artemis 2 will make the same journey with a crew in November 2024.

India’s Vikram Lander onboard, but holds a 26kg solar-powered rover in its belly which will explore the Moon’s south pole.

12:42 PM BST

Indian space agency 'set to initiate landing sequence'

12:37 PM BST

India set for historic first landing on Moon’s south pole

India is anxiously waiting to become the first country to land a spacecraft on the Moon’s south pole, days after a Russian probe crashed in the same region.

Wednesday’s attempted Moon landing is an historic moment for the world’s most populous nation, as it rapidly closes in on milestones set by global space powers.

Chandrayaan-3, which means “Mooncraft” in Sanskrit, is scheduled to touch down shortly after 1.30pm (UK time) near the little-explored lunar south pole.

Read our previous coverage here.

12:29 PM BST

Pictured: The Indian spacecraft bound for the Moon's south pole

12:26 PM BST

Why did Russia’s Moon mission end in failure?

Russia’s first mission to the Moon in nearly 50 years ended in failure as Luna-25 crashed into its surface on Sunday.

Roscosmos, the Russian space agency, said: “At around 2.57pm Moscow time, communication with Luna-25 was interrupted.

“The device switched to an unplanned orbit and ceased to exist as a result of a collision with the surface of the Moon.”

Director general Yury Borisov blamed the crash on the decades-long break in the lunar programme, noting that the craft’s engines had not been switched off properly.

12:22 PM BST

Good afternoon

Good afternoon and welcome to the liveblog.

We will be guiding you through the latest updates as India attempts to become the first country to reach the Moon’s south pole.