The lunar south pole is of particular interest to scientists, who believe the permanently shadowed polar craters may contain water. The spaceport is a pet project of Russian President Vladimir Putin and is key to his efforts to make Russia a space superpower and move Russian launches from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.Ī previous Indian attempt to land at the moon’s south pole in 2019 ended when the lander crashed into the moon’s surface. The Luna-25 launched flawlessly from the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Russia’s Far East, according to video feed from Roscosmos. “While scientists might have the task of studying lunar water, for Roscosmos the main task is simply to land on the moon - to recover lost Soviet expertise and learn how to perform this task in a new era.” “Foreign electronics are lighter, domestic electronics are heavier,” Egorov said. READ MORE: Tokyo private company loses contact with moon lander moments before touchdown The Luna-25 was initially meant to carry a small moon rover but that idea was abandoned to reduce the weight of the craft for improved reliability, analysts say. Sanctions imposed on Russia after it invaded Ukraine make it harder for it to access Western technology, impacting its space program. “The goal is political competition between two superpowers - China and the USA - and a number of other countries which also want to claim the title of space superpower.” “Study of the moon is not the goal,” said Vitaly Egorov, a popular Russian space analyst. Roscosmos, Russia’s space agency, said it wants to show Russia “is a state capable of delivering a payload to the moon,” and “ensure Russia’s guaranteed access to the moon’s surface.” India and Russia are aiming to be the first to land at the moon’s south pole. Only three governments have managed successful moon landings: the Soviet Union, the United States and China. The Russian spacecraft will take about 5.5 days to travel to the moon’s vicinity, then spend three to seven days orbiting at about 100 kilometers (62 miles) before heading for the surface. 23, about the same day as an Indian craft which was launched on July 14. The Russian lunar lander is expected to reach the moon on Aug. The launch from Russia’s Vostochny spaceport in the Far East of the Luna-25 craft to the moon is Russia’s first since 1976 when it was part of the Soviet Union. Ice offers a potential in situ source of air, water and even hydrogen rocket fuel for future astronauts.TALLINN, Estonia (AP) - A rocket carrying a lunar landing craft blasted off Friday on Russia’s first moon mission in nearly 50 years, racing to land on Earth’s satellite ahead of an Indian spacecraft. Launched July 14, the mission is the first to reach the moon's south polar region, an area of heightened interest because of the possibility of accessible ice deposits in permanently shadowed craters. The propulsion module put Chandrayaan-3 in the planned lunar orbit and is continuing to circle the moon while the lander operates on the surface. "Exploration of the moon is important for all mankind, in the future it may become a platform for deep space exploration." The Chandrayaan-3 lander atop its propulsion module prior to launch. "Roscosmos State Corporation congratulates Indian colleagues on the successful landing of the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft," the Russian space agency said in a post on Telegram. While science is a major objective, the primary goal of Chandrayaan-3's mission is to demonstrate soft-landing and rover technology as critical stepping stones to future, more ambitious flights to deep space targets. The rover, which has its own solar array and is designed to roll down a ramp to the surface from its perch inside the lander, also carries instruments, including two spectrometers to help determine the elemental composition of lunar rocks and soil at the landing site. It also carries a NASA laser reflector array to help precisely measure the moon's distance from Earth. The lander is equipped with instruments to measure temperature and thermal conductivity, seismic activity and the plasma environment. Designed to operate for a full two-week lunar "day," Chandrayaan-3 consists of the solar-powered Vikram lander and an 83-pound six-wheel rover named Pragyan that was carried to the surface nestled inside the lander. In contrast, Chandrayaan-3's orbital adjustments went by the book, setting up a touchdown that coincided with lunar dawn at the landing site. It initially appeared Russia might steal a bit of India's thunder with the planned landing Monday of the Luna-25 probe, Russia's first attempt to touch down on the moon in nearly 50 years.īut over the weekend, a thruster firing went awry and Roscosmos, the Russian federal space agency, reported the spacecraft had "ceased to exist" after a "collision with the lunar surface."
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