Chandrayaan-3 Moon mission takes off at 2.35 PM on Friday

Hyderabad: India is all decked up for the launch of the third edition of the Moon mission, Chandrayaan-3, on Friday at 2.35 PM. 

The 25.30-hour countdown for the launch commenced on Thursday at the spaceport in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh, the Indian Space Research Organisation said.

Friday's lunar expedition follows the 2019 Chandrayaan-2 mission where space scientists are aiming for a soft landing on the surface of the moon. 

Chandrayan-2 managed to land on the Moon but failed to do a soft landing due to some software and mechanical issues. Now they have worked on every aspect of it for four years and are hopeful to do a soft landing, the former scientist said.

A successful mission would see India enter an elite club of nations achieving such a feat, the others being the United States, China and the former Soviet Union.

However, the country will have to wait till August 23 or 24 to know the success of the mission as the landing would take place on those dates.