Name of Chandrayaan-3 landing site ‘Shiv Shakti’ approved

Public Relations WebDesk: The International Astronomical Union (IAU) has approved the name of Chandrayaan-3 landing site as ‘Shiv Shakti’. The approval came on March 19 after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the success of the mission on August 26, 2023. “The IAU Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature has approved the name Station ‘Shiv Shakti’ for the landing site of Vikram of Chandrayaan-3 lander,” said the Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature, published by the IAU. Provides detailed information about names.

The origin of the name is defined in the announcement as, “a compound word from Indian mythology denoting the masculine (Shiva) and feminine (Shakti) duality of nature; the landing site of Chandrayaan-3’s Vikram lander on August 28. On 2023, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced at ISRO that the landing point of Chandrayaan-3 mission will be known as “Shiv Shakti Point”.

While the Chandrayaan-2 landing failure spot will be called “Tiranga Point”, the day of Vikram lander’s touchdown on the Moon (August 23) will be celebrated as “National Space Day” in the country, PM Modi had said. Prime Minister Modi made these announcements while addressing a gathering of scientists at the ISRO Command Center of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO).

“India has decided to name the touchdown point where Vikram Lander made a soft landing on the Moon as “Shiv Shakti Point”. The word “Shiva” means welfare of humanity. PM Modi said, “Shakti” symbolizes the power required for the welfare of humanity. PM Modi has said that the Shiva Shakti point of the moon will be a symbol of unity from the Himalayas to Kanyakumari. PM Modi had underlined, “Shiv Shakti Point will inspire the coming generations towards the use of science for the welfare of humanity.”