India’s lander and rover on the Moon’s south pole have been put into sleep-mode as the lunar day comes to an end.

The sun is setting on the side of the Moon with India’s spacecraft which need sunlight to charge their batteries and function.

As such, the Vikram lander and the Pragyaan rover will “fall asleep” once their batteries are drained and reawaken around September 22nd when the next lunar day starts.

India became the first country to land on the Moon’s south pole when the lander and rover completed a landing on August 23rd.

The Moon is thought to hold important minerals but one of the major goals of Chandrayaan-3 is to hunt for water.

Scientists say the huge craters in the south pole region which are permanently in shadow hold ice which could support human habitation on the Moon in future.