SPACE
Pragyan confirms sulphur near South Pole of moon
- ISRO informed that Pragyan, the rover of the Chandrayaan-3 mission, has confirmed the presence of Aluminum (Al), Sulphur (S), Calcium (Ca), Iron (Fe), Chromium (Cr), Titanium (Ti), Manganese (Mn), Silicon (Si), and Oxygen (O) on the moon’s surface, near its south pole.
- The search for Hydrogen is underway.
- The Sulphur’s presence was confirmed when the Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) instrument of the rover made the first ever in situ measurements on the elemental composition of the lunar surface near the South Pole.
About LIBS
- It scientific technique that analyses the composition of materials by exposing them to intense laser pulses and generates localised plasma.
- The collected plasma light is spectrally resolved and detected by charge coupled devices.
- Since each element emits a characteristic set of wavelengths of light when in a plasma state, the elemental composition of the material can be determined.
