New Delhi: The Chandrayaan 5 mission is a collaboration between the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency
(JAXA). ISRO is providing the lander, while JAXA is providing the Lunar Polar Exploration (LUPEX) rover as well as the launch vehicle. The Government of India approved the Chandrayaan 5 mission on 10 March, 2025 in the form of a financial sanction. The goal of the mission is to prospect for water ice and other volatiles in the highlands around the south pole of the moon. Remote sensing data from earlier missions including USA’s Celementine Spacecraft and India’s Chandrayaan 1 mission have suggested that water ice exists in the permanently shadowed craters around the lunar south pole.
Direct, on-site measurements of the water ice is necessary to clarify its origin, and better understand how the Moon became an airless body, as well as assess the potential of using the water ice as a resource for future exploration. The main goals of the mission are to measure the abundance and distribution of water ice, identify other volatile chemicals, examine surface minerals and determine their physical properties, and probe any underground structures such as caves or lava tubes. This will help asses the extent to which in-situ resource utilisation (ISRU) can be used, along with how accessible and pure the water is.
The LUPEX rover will prospect for water ice
The rover mass including instruments has now been expanded to 420 kg. Payloads on board the rover are capable of detecting water ice even in the shadowed zones using built-in lights. The subsurface water deposits will be explored up to three metres in depth. NASA is also providing a neutron spectrometer capable of detecting hydrogen up to a depth of one metre. ESA is providing a payload for analysing surface gases. There is also a package for analysing drilled samples, that will heat the regolith or lunar soil and measure water loss.
A mass spectrometer will be able to identify chemicals, while a Raman spectrometer will analyse minerals and volatiles. The planned operations are in two phases, coarse surveys using surface instruments to narrow down on promising sites, followed by drilling up to depths of 1.5 metres for sampling and detailed analysis. The development is progressing, with engineering model tests on the payload. The mission will gather valuable data to guide future explorers on the Moon. ISRO and JAXA plan to launch the Chandrayaan 5/LUPEX mission in the 2028-29 timeframe.
