Online Desk: India has become only the fourth nation in the world to land a rocket on the moon, report agencies. The nation’s lunar spacecraft landed safely near the moon’s little-explored south pole on Wednesday, sparking wild celebrations and applause among technicians guiding the mission.

“Chandrayaan-3 has successfully soft-landed on the Moon,” the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) announced at its headquarters.

India’s Chandrayaan-3 becomes the first space mission to land near the south pole of the Moon. “India is now on the Moon,” announces PM Narendra Modi immediately after the Vikram lander touches down on the lunar surface.

Inside the lander is the six-wheeled Pragyaan rover, which, if all goes to plan, will roam the lunar surface gathering images and data.

Scientists believe craters that are permanently in shadow on the dark side of the Moon may hold frozen water. Modi also called it a “Historic day for India’s space sector,” on the social media platform X, previously known as Twitter.