ISRO has received the "Indian of the Year Award" for 2023 in the 'Outstanding Achievement' category. Dr. Jitendra Singh, the Union Minister of State for Science & Technology, presented the award on January 11. The accolade, given by a national TV channel, was accepted by ISRO Chairman S. Somnath and Chandrayaan 3 Project Director Dr. P. Veeramuthuvel in a ceremony in New Delhi. The award acknowledged ISRO's significant contribution to advancing space exploration, particularly highlighting the successful soft landing of Chandrayaan-3 on the Moon's unexplored South Polar region in 2023.

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has once again found itself in the spotlight, securing the prestigious Astro Award 2024 for its Chandrayaan 3 mission. Following its recent triumph with the Leif Erikson Lunar Prize, Chandrayaan 3 has now been recognized as the most inspirational, significant, and innovative space mission of 2023.

The Astro Awards, an annual ceremony hosted by the renowned Science Communicator Tim Dodd, also known as the Everyday Astronaut, has been celebrating outstanding achievements in space exploration for seven years. While the awards were previously announced through YouTube videos, this year marked the inaugural in-person ceremony.

Tim Dodd shared insights into the selection process, stating, "We polled people, receiving responses from the general public and our communities to gauge public interest. One mission stood out, making a global impact. The most important, innovative, and inspirational mission of 2023 goes to ISRO for Chandrayaan 3. This is a significant achievement because India is only the fourth country to achieve a soft landing on the Moon."

The audience erupted in laughter, highlighting the challenges of executing a soft, controlled landing on the Moon. Several missions, including SpaceIL's Beresheet lander (2019), Hakuto lander from Japan (April 2023), and Russia's Luna 25 lander (August 2023), faced unfortunate crashes before the successful landing by Chandrayaan 3. These incidents emphasized the difficulty of achieving a soft landing on the lunar surface.

Accepting the award on behalf of ISRO, the Consul General of India, DC Manjunath, expressed gratitude to Everyday Astronaut. Manjunath recalled Prime Minister Shree Narendra Modi's announcement, stating, "Chandrayaan 3's success belongs to the entire humanity," and highlighted that the mission's landing site is named Shiv Shakti. He further revealed that Chandrayaan 3's data would be shared with the global scientific community, emphasizing India's commitment to advancing space exploration on a global scale.

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