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Chandrayaan-1 was an impact lander, so it landed on the Moon in a "controlled manner" (ie on purpose). Apparently the lander was painted with the Indian flag[1].

1: https://web.archive.org/web/20090112054329/http://economicti...




What's the point of an impact lantern?


You still get video and sensor readings from the flight, you get a dust plume to analyze from a distance (especially with bigger impactors also giving you data about what's below the surface).


Even making it that far is a testament to the prowess of your space organization. It's a cheaper first step which probably directly and indirectly tests some 75% of the components needed for an actual landing.




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