India was amidst the festivities commemorating the triumphant touchdown of Chandrayaan 3 on the southern pole of the Moon on August 23, 2023, when a viral claim emerged.
A user on X(earlier twitter) named Pun Fact (@pun_fact) shared a video with a caption that read ,”Scientist Singh: ISRO has put a fake (edited) video showing that Chandrayaan has landed, I can also create such a video showing me landing on the moon. According to Gurbani, no one can place foot on the moon as there is no surface, no one can land as its just a source of light.”
This particular tweet from Pun Fact has gained a significant amount of attention, with 631 reposts, 308 quotes, and 1524 likes. It is evident that it has gained popularity swiftly.
Fact check
DFRAC’s team put the video in the key frames and investigated the viral claim. We found the tweet of Chairman of INSPACe, Dept of Space Pawan Goenka who shared the real image of the Lander Pragyaan Rover of Chandrayaan-3. He wrote the caption ,”First photo of Rover coming out of the lander on the ramp.”
We also found the images and statements shared by the official accounts of ISRO(Indian Space Research Organisation) with the caption ,” The communication link is established between the Ch-3 Lander and MOX-ISTRAC, Bengaluru. Here are the images from the Lander Horizontal Velocity Camera taken during the descent.”
Additionally, in another tweet , ISRO mentioned,” It shows a portion of Chandrayaan-3’s landing site. Seen also is a leg and its accompanying shadow.
Chandrayaan-3 chose a relatively flat region on the lunar surface.”
Looking closely into the image we also found the glimpse of the Leg of the lander of the Chandrayaan -3.
The live launch link is available for access on the official website of ISRO.
Conclusion
According to the fact-check conducted by DFRAC, it is clear that the assertion made in the video is false. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has indeed broadcasted the launch live and has also provided visual evidence of the rover’s successful landing on the moon.
