India announces plans for another moon mission

Undeterred by problems last summer, India will aim to launch its third lunar mission by 2021, the head of the country’s space agency said on Wednesday.

In a news conference reported by Press Trust of India, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Chairman Kailasavadivoo Sivan said work on the country's third lunar mission, Chandrayaan-3, was on and the launch may shift to next year.

“All activities related to the third lunar mission are going on smoothly. It will also have a lander, rover and a propulsion module like its predecessor,” he added.

He also said that India plans to launch at least 25 space missions in 2020.

In July the ISRO lost contact with it Chandrayaan-2's Vikram lander minutes before it was to land on the lunar surface.

The mission would have made India the fourth country after the U.S., Russia and China to carry out a soft landing on the moon.