RE: Other than satisfying curiosity, beating the odds, and enhancing national pride, what are the benefits?
We could ask the same of our Apollo Missions.
One paragrpah in the article gives a hint of what they intend to discover:
“In addition to the political and PR benefits, this mission does have real scientific value. India is the first nation to land near the moon’s south pole which scans have indicated is the area of the moon most likely to have ice. It’s thought that a supply of water would be significant for future crewed missions to the moon as it could be turned into drinking water or even rocket fuel.”
That falls under the category of “satisfying curiousity.” Definitely a benefit, but it sure as heck won’t go much farther than that.
As I turn to my suffering neighbor and say, “We now know more about the poles of the Moon than we ever have! May I bring you a glass of water from there?”