India’s Chandrayaan-2 Orbiter has achieved another major milestone by sending high-resolution radar images revealing traces of water ice and soil composition near the Moon’s poles. Operating since 2019, the spacecraft continues to orbit the Moon, providing groundbreaking data that deepens our understanding of its polar regions.
Scientists at the Space Applications Centre (SAC) in Ahmedabad have used data from the Dual Frequency Synthetic Aperture Radar (DFSAR) to create the first-ever full-polarimetric, L-band radar maps of the lunar surface. These images, with a remarkable spatial resolution of 25 meters per pixel, have been compiled from over 1,400 radar datasets collected across five years, covering latitudes between 80° and 90° in both hemispheres.
ISRO has come up with advanced data products from the Chandrayaan-2 lunar orbiter for deeper understanding of the lunar polar regions. These include important parameters describing physical and dielectric properties of the Moon’s surface. This is India’s major value addition… pic.twitter.com/5w2eQ4OVky
— ISRO (@isro) November 8, 2025
The advanced radar system, capable of transmitting and receiving in both vertical and horizontal modes, enables researchers to study the Moon’s surface and subsurface layers with exceptional precision. Using indigenously developed algorithms, the SAC team has analysed parameters such as the Circular Polarisation Ratio (CPR) an indicator of subsurface ice, along with data on surface roughness, density, and porosity.
These findings not only confirm the presence of water ice but also provide new insights into the Moon’s geological structure, paving the way for future lunar exploration and human missions.
