From the ‘Moon is Indian’ to ‘Modi first, Moon next’: Front pages on Chandrayaan milestone

Days after Russia’s Luna-25 crashed during a similar attempt, India has become the first country to land on the Moon’s south pole, and most prominent dailies hailed the triumph with banner headlines. 

While Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s picture and his remarks on the historic landing were part of all front pages, many of them also carried separate reports on the ISRO team that made it possible.

The spacecraft with lander Vikram and rover Pragyan had stormed into space from Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh on July 14, amid uncertainties. “The next 42 days are crucial,” ISRO chairman S Somanath had said. On Wednesday, as Chandrayaan-3 touched down on the moon, ISRO’s mission control centre in Bengaluru was taken over by thunderous applause and loud cheers.

It was a milestone for India and ISRO, which had lost contact with Chandrayaan-2’s lander Vikram moments after landing in 2019. PM Modi had joined the live telecast from the BRICS Summit in Johannesburg.

With so much buzz, we turned to today’s front pages to see how they reported on the landing.

The Indian Express carried five reports linked to the Moon mission as part of the lead package on its front page. The headline said “the Moon is Indian”, with a picture of the lander after the touchdown and the time stamp.

A similar headline was carried by German tabloid Bild on its front page after the Apollo landing in 1969. “The Moon is now Ami,” it said, using a German expression for Americans.

The Hindustan Times front page carried a banner headline saying “Chandrayaan-3, 2, 1… contact” to denote the suspense of the 17 minutes to the milestone. The lead package had three pictures of the launch, journey and arrival of the mission. While a report on the ISRO team that made it possible was carried in an inside page, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remarks on the landing were part of a separate report on the front page.

The Telegraph, meanwhile, commented on the space given to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s during the ISRO live telecast, with the headline “Modi first, Moon next”. “India is on the Moon: The first country to reach lunar south pole,” read the strap.

It carried a picture of scientists cheering the final phase of the project, with another of PM Modi during the live telecast. “In the minutes, the face of Modi, who is in South Africa on an official visit, and an animated lander appeared on screen. The ISRO commentator said: ‘We can see the honourable Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modiji, who is here to encourage us, and he is critically looking at the visuals.’ Seconds later, applause erupted in the control room in Bangalore,” read the caption to the second picture.

A single column next to the lead package reported on the Mizoram bridge collapse killing 18 people from West Bengal’s Malda.

“India goes where no nation’s gone before”. That was the banner headline in the Times of India, whose Mumbai edition had four reports linked to the landing on the front page. One of the reports was on the ISRO team behind the mission. “Stars in the background: The real action heroes who made it Mission Possible,” read the headline.

An infographic on the front page detailed the various phases of the project, and its previous editions.

“India lights up the dark side of the moon,” read the banner headline on the front page of The Hindu, which carried just one report on the front page spread over eight columns, with a picture of the landing site as clicked by the lander. Detailed reports were on inside pages, with an editorial which noted the significance of the moment for India’s space sector.

Since time immemorial, outer space has captured the imaginations of people across the globe. Many missions have been sent ever since outer space became a strategic domain and within the reach of superpowers. Read about the politics and international laws of space here.