Explained: How India's Third Shot At The Moon Will Be Different

India will look to build on the spectacular success of the first lunar mission, and hope to avoid the mistakes of the second.

When the rocket carrying the Chandrayaan-3 mission lifts off from Sriharikota tomorrow afternoon, India will look to build on the spectacular success of the first mission - which confirmed the presence of water molecules on the Moon - and hope to avoid the mistakes of the second, when the lander crashed on the lunar surface. 

India's Moonshots

Chandrayaan-1, India's maiden mission to the Moon, launched in October 2008 and remained operational till August 2009. It changed humanity's understanding of the celestial body by confirming the presence of water molecules on the lunar surface using its Moon Impact Probe.