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ISRO, the Indian Space Research Organisation, has won the coveted Goddard Astronautics Award from the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) in a proud moment for the Indian space science community. This award celebrates Chandrayaan-3, which landed softly in the region of the lunar South Pole near the lander in 2023.

Its honor was bestowed during the AIAA ASCEND 21st Annual Conference on May 21, 2026, in Washington, DC. India’s Ambassador to the US, Vinay Mohan Kwatra, received the award on behalf of ISRO and the Chandrayaan-3 team. The mission's efforts in advancing the knowledge and understanding of the Moon by "achieving magnificent results in both engineering and science in a very economical way" are gratefully acknowledged in the citation.

Vikram orbiter systems and Pragyaan rover experiments, along with the scientific activities of the Chandrayaan-3 lander and rover, Vijravikram Srinivas, the poster, told the maker that they had made India the first country to have landed near the lunar south pole. The shared acceptance by the world highlights India's emerging role in the space exploration program and boosts Indo-US space cooperation.

The success of this feat is a testament to the ingenuity and perseverance of ISRO and the nation as a whole.