> Moon exploration
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Consider scientific space moon exploration- a satellite of the Earth: the first flight to the Moon and the first man, a description of research by devices with a photo, important dates.
The moon is located closest to the Earth, therefore it has become the main object of space research and one of the goals of the race between the USA and the USSR. The first devices were launched in the 1950s. and these were primitive mechanisms. But the technology did not stand still, which led to the first step of Neil Armstrong on the lunar surface.
In 1959, the Soviet apparatus Luna-1 was sent to the satellite, flying past at a distance of 3725 km. This mission is important because it showed that Earth's neighbor is devoid of a magnetic field.
First landing on the moon
In the same year, Luna 2 was sent, which landed on the surface and recorded several craters. The first blurry photos of the Moon arrived on the third mission. In 1962, the first American probe, Ranger 4, arrived. But it was a suicide bomber. Scientists deliberately sent it to the surface to get more data.
Ranger 7 departed after 2 years and transmitted 4,000 images before his death. In 1966, Luna 9 landed safely on the surface. Scientific instruments not only sent better images, but also studied the peculiarities of the alien world.
The Surveyor (1966-1968) surveyed the soil and landscape became successful American missions. Also in 1966-1967. were sent by American probes, anchored in orbit. So it was possible to fix 99% of the surface. This was the period of spacecraft exploration of the Moon. With a sufficient database in place, it is time to send the first man to the moon.
Man on the moon
On July 20, 1969, the first people arrived at the satellite - Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, after which the Americans began exploring the moon. The Apollo 11 mission landed in the Sea of Tranquility. Later, a lunar rover will arrive, which will allow you to move faster. Until 1972, 5 missions and 12 people managed to arrive. Conspiracy theorists are still trying to figure out if the Americans were on the moon by providing recent research and carefully examining the video. So far, there is no exact refutation of the flight, so we will consider the first step of Neil Armstrong as a breakthrough in space research.
This breakthrough made it possible to focus on other objects. But in 1994, NASA returned to the lunar theme. Clementine's mission was able to display surface layer at various wavelengths. Since 1999, the Lunar Scout has been searching for ice.
Today, interest in the celestial body is returning and new space exploration of the Moon is being prepared. In addition to America, India, China, Japan and Russia are looking at the satellite. There is already talk of colonies and humans will be able to return to Earth's satellite in the 2020s. Below you can see a list of spacecraft directed to the Moon, and significant dates.
Significant dates:
- 1609 g.- Thomas Harriot was the first to point a telescope into the sky and display the Moon. Later he will create the first cards;
- 1610 g.- Galileo publishes the publication of observations of the satellite (Star Messenger);
- 1959-1976- The US lunar program of 17 robotic missions reached the surface and returned samples three times;
- 1961-1968- American launches set the stage for the launch of the first humans to the moon as part of the Apollo program;
- 1969 year- Neil Armstrong became the first person to step on lunar surface;
- 1994-1999- Clementine and Lunar Scout transmit data on the possibility of water ice at the poles;
- 2003 r.- SMART-1 from ESA extracts data on the main lunar chemical constituents;
- 2007-2008- The Japanese Kaguya spacecraft and the Chinese Shanier-1 launch one-year orbital missions. They will be followed by the Indian Shandrayan-1;
- 2008 r.- NASA Lunar Science Institute is formed to lead all lunar exploration missions;
- 2009 r. NASA's LRO and LCROSS launch together to re-master the satellite. In October, the second apparatus was positioned above the shaded side near south pole that helped to find water ice;
- 2011 r.- Sending the CRAIL spacecraft to display the inner lunar part (from the crust to the core). NASA Launches ARTEMIS Focused on Surface Composition;
- 2013 g.- NASA's LADEE spacecraft is sent to collect information about the structure and composition of the thin lunar atmospheric layer. The mission ended in April 2014;
- December 14, 2013- China has become the third country that has lowered the device to the surface of the satellite - Utah;
People have always been interested in space. The moon, being the closest to our planet, has become the only celestial body that has been visited by man. How did the research of our satellite begin, and who won the palm in landing on the moon?
Natural satellite
The moon is a celestial body that has accompanied our planet for centuries. It does not emit light, but only reflects it. The moon is the satellite of the earth closest to the sun. In the sky of our planet, it is the second brightest object.
We always see one side of the Moon due to the fact that its rotation is synchronized with the rotation of the Earth around its axis. The moon moves around the Earth unevenly - now moving away, now approaching it. The great minds of the world have long puzzled themselves over the study of her movement. This is an incredibly complex process, influenced by the flattening of the Earth and the attraction of the Sun.
Scientists still argue about how the moon was formed. There are three versions, one of which - the main one - was put forward after obtaining samples of the lunar soil. It has been nicknamed the Giant Collision Theory. It is based on the assumption that more than 4 billion years ago, two protoplanets collided, and their breakaway particles were stuck in near-earth orbit, eventually forming the Moon.
Another theory suggests that the Earth and its natural satellite were formed by a cloud of gas and dust at the same time. Proponents of the third theory suggest that the Moon originated far from Earth, but was captured by our planet.
Moon exploration begins
Even in ancient times, this heavenly body did not give rest to humanity. The first studies of the Moon were carried out in the II century BC by Hipparchus, who tried to describe its movement, size and distance from the Earth.
In 1609, Galileo invented the telescope, and the exploration of the moon (albeit visual) shifted to new step... It became possible to study the surface of our satellite, to make out its craters and mountains. For example, Giovanni Riccioli made it possible to create one of the first lunar maps in 1651. At that time, the term "sea" was born, denoting the dark areas of the moon's surface, and craters began to be named after famous personalities.
In the 19th century, photography comes to the aid of astronomers, which allows more precise research relief features. Lewis Rutherford, Warren de la Rue and Pierre Janssen at various times actively studied the lunar surface from images, and the latter created its "Photographic Atlas".
Mastering the Moon. Attempts to create a rocket
The first stages of the study have been passed, and interest in the Moon is growing hotter. In the 19th century, the first thoughts about space travel to a satellite were born, from which the history of the exploration of the Moon began. For such a flight, it was necessary to create an apparatus, the speed of which would be able to overcome gravity. It turned out that the existing engines were not powerful enough to pick up the required speed and maintain it. There were also difficulties with the vector of motion of the vehicles, since after take-off they necessarily round off their movement and fell to the Earth.
The solution came in 1903, when engineer Tsiolkovsky created a design for a rocket capable of overcoming the gravitational field and reaching the target. The fuel in the rocket engine was supposed to burn at the very beginning of the flight. So, its mass became much less, and the movement was carried out due to the liberated energy.
Who is first?
The 20th century was marked by large-scale military events. All scientific potential was channeled into a military channel, and the exploration of the moon had to be slowed down. Deployed in 1946 cold war made astronomers and engineers think again about space travel. One of the questions in the rivalry between the Soviet Union and the United States was the following: who is the first to land on the lunar surface?
Superiority in the struggle for the exploration of the moon and outer space went to the Soviet Union, and on October 4, 1957, the first was released, and two years later the first space station"Luna-1", or, as it was called, "Dream".
In January 1959, the AMS - an automatic interplanetary station - passed about 6 thousand kilometers from the Moon, but could not land. "Dream" fell into a heliocentric orbit, becoming artificial. The period of its revolution around the star is 450 days.
The landing on the moon was unsuccessful, but very valuable data were obtained on the outer radiation belt of our planet and the solar wind. It was possible to establish that natural satellite negligible magnetic field.
Following the Union in March 1959, the United States launched Pioneer-4, which flew 60,000 km from the Moon, entering the solar orbit.
The real breakthrough happened on September 14 of the same year, when the Luna-2 spacecraft made the world's first lunar landing. The station had no amortization, so the landing was tough but significant. Made it "Luna-2" near the Sea of Rains.
Exploring the lunar expanses
The first landing paved the way for further exploration. Following Luna-2, Luna-3 was sent, circled around the satellite and photographed " dark side"Planets. The lunar map became more complete, new names of craters appeared on it: Jules Verne, Kurchatov, Lobachevsky, Mendeleev, Pasteur, Popov, etc.
The first American station landed on an Earth satellite only in 1962. It was Ranger 4 station that fell on
Then the American "Rangers" and the Soviet "Moon" and "Probes" in turn attacked the cosmic space, either making telephoto shots of the lunar surface, or smashing them into smithereens. The first soft landing was made by the Luna-9 station in 1966, and the Luna-10 became the first satellite of the Moon. Having circled this planet 460 times, the "satellite of the satellite" interrupted communication with the Earth.
Luna-9 was broadcasting a TV program filmed by an automatic machine. From the TV screens, the Soviet viewer watched the shooting of the cold desert expanses.
The United States followed the same course as the Union. In 1967, the American station "Surveyer-1" made the second soft landing in the history of astronautics.
To the moon and back
For several years, Soviet and American researchers have achieved incredible success. For many centuries, the mysterious night light has excited the minds of both great minds and hopeless romantics. Step by step, the moon became closer and more accessible to humans.
The next goal was not only to send a space station to the satellite, but also to return it back to Earth. The engineers faced new challenges. The device, flying back, had to enter the earth's atmosphere at a not too steep angle, otherwise it could burn out. Too large an angle, on the contrary, could create a ricochet effect, and the device would fly into space again without reaching the Earth.
Angle calibration issues have been resolved. From 1968 to 1970, the Zond series of vehicles successfully performed landing flights. "Zond-6" became a test one. He had to perform a test flight, so that later the cosmonaut pilots could carry out it. The device orbited the moon at a distance of 2500 km, but upon returning to Earth, the parachute opened too early. The station crashed and the flight of the astronauts was canceled.
Americans on the Moon: the first moonwalkers
Steppe turtles, that's who first flew around the moon and returned to Earth. The animals were sent on a space flight on the Soviet probe Zond-5 in 1968.
The United States was clearly lagging behind in the development of the lunar expanses, because all the first successes belonged to the USSR. In 1961, President Kennedy made a loud announcement that a man would land on the moon by 1970. And the Americans will do it.
For the implementation of such a plan, it was necessary to prepare a reliable ground. The images of the lunar surface taken by the Ranger spacecraft were studied, and the anomalous phenomena of the moon were investigated.
For manned flights, the Apollo program was opened, which used the calculations of the flight path to the Moon, made by the Ukrainian. Subsequently, this trajectory was named the "Kondratyuk Track".
Apollo 8 performed its first test manned flight without landing. F. Borman, W. Anders, J. Lovell made several circles around the natural satellite, making a survey of the area for a future expedition. T. Stafford and J. Young performed the second flight around the satellite on Apollo 10. The cosmonauts separated from the spacecraft module and stayed 15 km from the Moon separately.
After all the preparations, Apollo 11 was finally dispatched. The Americans landed on the moon on July 21, 1969 near the Sea of Tranquility. The first step was taken by Neil Armstrong, followed by the Cosmonauts who stayed on a natural satellite for 21.5 hours.
Further studies
After Armstrong and Aldrin, 5 more scientific expeditions were sent to the moon. The last time astronauts landed on the satellite's surface was in 1972. Throughout human history, only in these expeditions did people land on other
The Soviet Union did not abandon the study of the surface of a natural satellite. Since 1970, the radio-controlled "Lunokhod" series 1 and 2 have been dispatched. The lunar rover on the moon collected soil samples and photographed the relief.
In 2013, China became the third country to reach our satellite by making a soft landing with the Yuytu lunar rover.
Conclusion
Since ancient times, it has been a fascinating object for study. In the 20th century, the exploration of the moon turned from scientific research into a heated political race. A lot has been done to travel to it. Now the Moon remains the most studied astronomical object, which, moreover, has been visited by man.
L una has always attracted a person. The literature is rich in descriptions of fantastic journeys to the moon, the earliest of which "took place" almost 2000 years ago. However, until recently, the practical implementation of such flights was beyond the capabilities of a person who was content with studying it with telescopes. The first to observe the moon through a telescope was the Renaissance astronomer Galileo Galilei. He saw large, dark, relatively smooth plains and lighter expanses of mountains and craters. Over time, cartographers will call these plains seas, although it is obvious that they have nothing to do with the seas in our opinion. The development of photography has greatly facilitated the technology of mapping. By the end of the XIX century. the entire hemisphere of the Moon, which is always facing the Earth, was photographed with a resolution of less than 1 km and as a result detailed atlases were compiled. Nevertheless, many of the basic properties of the moon remained unknown.
It was found that the diameter of the Moon is about 4 times less than the diameter of the Earth and that it moves in an almost circular orbit around the Earth with an orbital period of 1 month. The absence of an atmosphere and signs of water ruled out the hope of finding life on the moon, similar to earth. Average density, making up only 61% of the Earth's density, suggested otherwise internal structure Moon, but how great these differences were, remained a mystery. Even less clear were the composition of the rocks composing the Moon and the origin of the Moon. Over the billions of years of the Earth's existence, the initial properties of its surface have long changed under the influence of wind, water, glaciers and biological processes. The lunar surface was exposed to solar wind and bombardment by meteorites, withstanding temperature contrasts. However, the influence of these factors was minimal. In fact, the Moon has been very well preserved since its formation; she is a mute witness of the past. A direct study of the Moon would help to better understand the origin of the Earth-Moon system, and possibly the origin of the Solar system... Proceeding from this, the USSR and the USA in the late 50s were preparing to launch automatic vehicles in the direction of the moon.
First attempts
Before the first automatic interplanetary stations (AMS) launched to the Moon, a very modest task was set: to develop a sufficiently high speed and provide the necessary guidance accuracy for a guaranteed flight close enough to the Moon to transmit maximum information. Reach this goal for so early stage the development of space technology was not easy. Imagine that the Earth is a giant merry-go-round, and the Moon is a target 384,000 km away and travels within an hour a path equal to its diameter. Using a rifle mounted on a carousel, try to hit the target with a bullet that will reach it in a few days, moving in a long arc at a decreasing speed. The shot must be timed in seconds to ensure either a direct hit or a flight close to the target.
The first three attempts of the US Air Force to launch the Pioneer AIS to the Moon in August, October and November 1958 failed because sufficient speed was not developed to reach the departure trajectory; the experiment of the US Army ended in a similar way.
In the end, the US Army was able to secure the passage spacecraft at some distance from the moon, but this happened only after the similar success of the USSR.
Although the first American "Pioneers" did not fulfill their main goal - a flyby near the Moon, they were the first to measure the interplanetary magnetic field and the extent of the Earth's radiation belt. The Soviet AMS Luna made its first successful flight in January 1959, passing at a distance of less than 5000 km from the lunar surface. An outstanding success was achieved in September of the same year, when the Luna-2 station reached the lunar surface at a point located about 800 km north of the center of the visible part near the craters Aristil, Archimedes and Autolycus, and became the first human product delivered to another heavenly body. Immediately before falling onto the lunar surface, the onboard instruments transmitted information indicating the absence of a significant magnetic field and radiation belts around the Moon.
In October of the same year, the Luna-3 spacecraft was launched on the orbiting trajectory of the Moon, passing at a distance of 6200 km from the Moon. Under the influence gravitational field The station circled the moon and entered the trajectory of returning to Earth in the northern part of the sky, which created very favorable conditions for the operation of Soviet tracking stations. The operation was planned in such a way that the overflight took place at a time when almost all back side The moon was illuminated by sunlight and could be photographed by onboard cameras. In this position, the station, oriented to the Moon in the rays of the Sun, has photographed about 30% of the visible and 70% of the never-before-seen sides of the Moon. The available visible side information was used to map the invisible side. The photographs were developed on board the Luna-3 station and transmitted to Earth using a television system. As a result, an atlas was published, representing the first view of man on the far side of the moon.
In 1959 and 1960. NASA has attempted to launch five more heavier Pioneer spacecraft with protruding solar cell panels. The vehicles were equipped with liquid one-component hydrazine engines designed for braking in order to enter a circumlunar orbit. Unfortunately, all Atlas-Able launch vehicles crashed either during static fire tests or during launch, and the payloads were lost.
The fifties ended with the impressive successes of the USSR in space, leaving far behind everything that was done in the United States. In three successful launches The Soviet Union 1030 kg of payload were sent to the moon and the surrounding space, while the United States was able to launch only one device weighing 6 kg.
moon close-up
 "Ranger-7" 1 Low directional antenna. 2 Hole for six television cameras (two large and four small viewing angles). 3 Solar panels fastening lock. 4 Folding solar panels (2 pcs.). 5 Rechargeable batteries 6 Gas cylinder of the reactive attitude control system. 7 Shotgun antenna. 8 Electronic equipment of the attitude control system. 9 Television subsystem. Ranger-7 was launched on July 28, 1964 by the Atlas-Agena-B carrier rocket into the trajectory of the encounter with the Moon. The device had six television cameras. During the last 13 minutes of flight before falling into the Sea of Clouds (10 ° 38 "S, 20 ° 36" W) at a speed of about 9300 km / h, more than 4300 television images were received. Two of the six cameras had wide-angle optics and scanned 1150 lines for high definition. These cameras transmitted images of the lunar surface from an altitude of 1600 km until the moment of touchdown. Four cameras with small viewing angles scanned the image for 300 lines. | They transmitted images of small areas. These cameras were operated in pairs with switching every 0.2 s. Unlike the "Ranger-6" apparatus, which failed when the television cameras were turned on, the "Ranger-7" completed the program in full. Signals were received at the Laboratory jet engines July 31, 1964 for 19 minutes. The resulting images of the lunar surface made it possible to distinguish the topographic features of craters up to 30 m in diameter! |
The first AMS "Pioneer" possessed a very disabilities... Therefore, in the 1960s, NASA embarked on a completely new program to develop a substantially larger, standardized spacecraft capable of performing detailed studies of the Moon and planets. This program, called the Ranger, originally included five flights: two test flights and three operational. When landing a man on the moon became a national program, the number of flights was increased.
 Flight scheme AMS "Ranger-6" - "Ranger-9" 1 Launch by the Atlas-Agena carrier rocket. 2 The first activation of the "Agena" stage. 3 "Agena" in passive flight in a circular intermediate orbit at a speed of 28,900 km / h at an altitude of 185 km. 4 The second activation of the "Agena" stage for the transition to the flight trajectory to the Moon. 5 AWS is approaching a corridor with a diameter of 16 km with a deviation from the design initial speed within 26 km / h. With the help of the engine of intermediate correction, the device is brought to the trajectory of the meeting with the Moon. 6 Trajectory corrections in order to compensate for errors in the control system for determining the coordinates of the AMC and flight speed. |
Ranger 1 and 2 were the first standardized space stations for technical research and measurements in the surrounding space in high Earth orbits. When both spacecraft were launched, the engines of the upper stages of the carriers did not turn on again, and only low orbits with a short lifetime were achieved. Nevertheless, the flights provided some scientific and technical information.
The AMC of the next series was equipped with braking motors, which were believed to allow a seismometer designed for a "hard" landing to be delivered to the lunar surface. After the impact upon meeting the lunar surface at a speed of up to 200 km / h, the seismometer had to independently come into operation and transmit information about the seismic characteristics and the fall of meteorites over the next 60-90 days. Unfortunately, the Ranger-3 booster rocket gave it an excessive speed, which made it impossible to meet with the Moon. However, all of the vehicle's systems remained in working order, and a large amount of in-flight research was carried out, including the first time an intermediate orbit correction maneuver was performed. With the AMS "Ranger-4 and -5" difficulties arose at the initial stages of flights. With the help of transmitters, which were installed on the landing capsules used as beacons, the Ranger-4 apparatus was controlled, which ensured its fall on the far side of the moon; it was the first American AMC to reach the moon. The Ranger-5 spacecraft was controlled for 11 days, it flew at a distance of 725 km from the Moon and went into orbit around the Sun.
After that, a thorough analysis of all systems of the vehicle was carried out with the aim of identifying and upgrading elements with insufficient reliability, as well as backing up the most critical elements to ensure the success of subsequent launches. The flight of the AMS "Ranger-6" proceeded successfully until the moment the camera was turned on. Subsequently, it was found that a high voltage arc formed during the launch, damaging the television equipment. The device went to the target, but did not transmit a single image.
A careful analysis of the images obtained from the Ranger spacecraft showed that the "sea" plains have no features other than craters with even edges. The absence of boulders, large stones and crevices made it possible to proceed to the next stage of studying the Moon - soft landing.
After the system was reconstructed in July 1964, the Ranger 7 spacecraft was launched, and its flight, unlike the previous ones, was an outstanding success: more than 4,300 high-quality television images of the Moon, obtained before contact with the surface, were transmitted. The last image, taken from a height of 1600 m, covered an area of 30 X 50 m; craters up to 1 m in diameter were clearly visible on it.The resolution of this last image was about 0.4 m.
The flights of the Ranger-8 and -9 spacecraft at the beginning of 1965 were successful; 7137 and 5814 television images of the lunar surface were transmitted, respectively. In accordance with the flight program, the Ranger-8 apparatus was supposed to approach the Sea of Tranquility along a gentle trajectory with an inclination angle of 42 ° in order to cover a large area during filming. Even with a significant lateral velocity component, the resolution in the last image was less than 2 m. The Ranger-9 was aimed at the Alfons crater with a diameter of 130 km, the fall occurred with a deviation within 5 km from the calculated point, the resolution in the last image reached 0.3 m.
Soviet automatic interplanetary soft landing stations
For a soft landing of a payload on the Moon, the accuracy of previous operations and, in addition to this, the damping of the final speed of at least 2.6 km / s are required. Landing from orbit to Earth is less difficult, since almost all orbital velocity The satellite can be extinguished when braking in the atmosphere. When landing on the moon, which does not have an atmosphere, the reduction in speed can only be achieved with the help of braking motors and the consumption of a significant amount of fuel.
In the USSR, for the first time, opportunities were created for soft landing on the moon with the creation of new stations of the "Luna" series in 1963. These stations weighing up to 1.8 tons were designed to deliver a 100 kg instrument container to a point on the lunar surface between 62 and 64 ° h. near the equator. This was the only point on the Moon, when approaching which the flight path of the Luna station became almost vertical, which simplified the control scheme of the apparatus.
The program provided for the following typical operation. After being launched into a near-earth intermediate orbit, the Luna station with the last stage of the launch vehicle remains in this orbit for a period of one orbit until it reappears over the territory of the USSR. Then the engine of the last stage is switched on, which transfers the apparatus to the flight trajectory towards the Moon with a duration of 3.5 days. At a distance of about 75 km from the Moon, the radar installation and the astronavigation unit, which are no longer needed, are dropped and the descent begins with the engine running. The spherical payload is separated from the engine compartment just before it touches the surface, and after its descent, four petal panels open on its upper hemisphere, exposing the antennas and the television camera.
With the launch of the Luna-9 station in February 1966, a soft landing on the Moon of a man-made object was successfully carried out for the first time. A turret-like automatic lunar station (ALS) with a television camera equipped with a mechanical scanning drive transmitted several panoramas of the surrounding area and data on radiation at a moderate resolution for 75 hours.
The second Soviet station to make a soft lunar landing in December 1966 was Luna 13. After the four protective panels were deployed, two folded mechanical manipulators with soil survey instruments were activated. With the help of a mechanical soil meter on one manipulator and a radiation density meter on the other, unique information about the density and composition of the soil surface was obtained.
 Landing scheme of the AMS "Luna-9" 1 Separation of the automatic lunar station when the surface touches the pin installed on the main unit, after the rocket-dynamic braking. 2 ALS falls with a rebound and rolls over the surface. Due to the shifted center of gravity, it takes the calculated position. 3 The beginning of the transition to a working state. 4 The expandable panel petals facilitate the orientation of the ALS in a vertical position; a television camera is exposed and antennas are deployed. Signals are transmitted to Earth. The total mass of the AMS "Luna-9" after insertion into the flight trajectory to the Moon is 1583 kg. The ALS mass after landing on the Moon is 100 kg. The time of active existence is 75 hours. |
All other Luna spacecraft of this generation were launched into circumlunar orbits under non-landing programs.
To place an object in a circumlunar orbit requires a change in its speed by 1 km / s, while descent to the lunar surface requires a change in speed by 2.6 km / s, i.e., a lunar satellite requires significantly less fuel than an apparatus. landing. In order not to develop a series lunar satellites new design, in the USSR it was decided to take as a basis the propulsion system of the lunar landing block, fill it with fuel by 2/3 of the nominal volume and use the remaining volume to increase the delivered payload. The mass of the payload delivered to the lunar surface by "Luna-9" was approximately 100 kg, while the mass of the first artificial lunar satellite delivered by the AMS "Luna-10" was 240 kg. This apparatus was equipped with instruments for measuring radiation and registering micrometeorites in the circumlunar space. From the first satellite of the moon, the melody of the "Internationale" was repeatedly transmitted to Earth. The Luna-11 satellite had approximately the same payload, but its design was improved based on the experience gained during the operation of the Luna-10 station. The satellites "Luna-12" and "Luna-14" were not separated from the engine compartments after the completion of the maneuvers into the lunar orbit. The radar unit and the astronavigation unit were also not dropped in order to provide the necessary astro-orientation of the vehicles for capturing and transmitting images of the lunar surface to the Earth.
| Launching scheme of AMS "Surveyer" 1 Orientation. 2 Maneuver 30 minutes before touching the surface before engaging the brake motor. 3 According to the radio altimeter (which is ejected from the brake motor nozzle), the brake motor is activated. From an altitude of 83.7 km and at a speed of 9500 km / h, the device is stabilized by control motors. 4 The brake motor stops working and separates; from a height of 11,700 m, the descent control is provided by the control brake motors. 5 The control motors are switched off at a distance of 4.27 m from the lunar surface at a speed of 5.6 km / h. 6 The spacecraft lands at a speed of 12.8 km / h on shock-absorbing supports. Specifications "Surveyor-3" |
During the period under review, another flight to the Moon was carried out in the USSR. The automatic interplanetary probe "Zond-3" was launched on the trajectory of the flight past the Moon in July 1965 in order to obtain images of a part of the far side of the Moon that was not photographed from the station "Luna-3". Of the 28 images obtained, 25 contained images of the lunar surface, three of them in the ultraviolet range of the spectrum. In general, images covering 95% of the area of the far side of the Moon were obtained with the help of the Luna-3 and Zond-3 satellites.
Before flights spaceship"Apollo"
The successive launches of the automatic interplanetary stations Luna, which prepared the successful flight of Luna-9, preceded the launch of the American automatic station Surveyor.
Initially, a two-part program was conceived, including orbital and landing blocks to support the work on the lunar landing program of the manned Apollo spacecraft. Subsequently, the part of the program related to orbiters was independently developed in the Lunar Orbiter series of lunar satellites.
Surveyor-1 was launched to the Moon 4 months after Luna-9 along a direct launch trajectory. It was equipped with four engines: three controllable thrust rocket engines and one (main) solid-propellant braking engine. After an intermediate correction with the help of control motors, preparation for landing was carried out. The main brake motor was turned on at a distance of 75 km from the lunar surface and, working in conjunction with the controllers of the rocket engine, braked the vehicle to a speed of 70 m / s.
After the fuel burned out, the heavy brake engine was separated, and on the final stage Only the control motors worked on the descent, providing almost complete braking (hovering) of the apparatus at a height of 4 m. From this height, the apparatus descended in free fall with the engines turned off in order to minimize contamination and destruction of the surface under the action of escaping gases. Shock-absorbing struts and crush bearings on the load-bearing frame soften the shock load. Surveyor 1, the first of its series, has successfully made a soft landing on the moon. Over the next six weeks, 11,237 images were transmitted to the Earth (two weeks lunar night lasted and no filming was carried out), of which almost all had high resolution and were made in color using light filters.Surveyor 2 was lost as a result of the failure to start one of the three control engines. The Surveyor 3 landing made the flight control personnel jittery, as the lunar surface with a high reflectivity apparently interfered with the operation of the landing radar, which led to two jumps of the device before the engine cutoff, the first time up to 10 m and the second time up to 3 m During the next two weeks of the lunar day, the device transmitted 6300 images of the landing area to Earth. Among them were many photographs of a mechanical grab bucket, which plunged into the soil to a depth of 18 cm. The information obtained showed that the structure of the soil on the lunar surface is similar to wet coastal sand on Earth and meets the requirements for landing a manned vehicle. Later, the astronauts of the Apollo-12 spacecraft landed at a distance of about 400 m from the Surveyor-3 station, dismantled and returned to Earth some of its elements to study the effect on the structure of a long stay in the moon.
Surveyor 4 was lost while the engine's braking engine was running when all onboard transmissions suddenly stopped. Starting with Surveyor-5, all devices in this series were equipped with alpha analyzers containing a radioactive source (curium-252) to determine chemical composition lunar soil.
Surveyor 6, after a careful survey of the landing site, was lifted from the lunar surface using control engines, made a lateral maneuver at a distance of 2.5 m and re-landed to continue research.
In contrast to previous flights conducted to study possible Apollo landing sites near the equator, Surveyor 7 was directed to a point located in the immediate vicinity of the edge of Tycho crater in the southern continental region. After an unsuccessful attempt to deploy the alpha analyzer, it was forcibly lowered to the surface using a grab bucket. Over 21,000 images were received from Surveyor 7; some of them show two laser beams generated by stations on the shadow side of the earth.
The Surveyor program examined the lunar surface in the proposed landing areas of the Apollo spacecraft and found that it had sufficient strength to land the spacecraft's lunar cabin. Survey television cameras provided critical information indicating a small amount of rock debris that could interfere with the landing of a manned vehicle.
 | AMS "Probe" 1 Shotgun antenna. 2 The returned vehicle. 3 Service compartment with maneuvering engine and attitude control system. 4 Solar panels (bottom view). 5 Instrument compartment. This AMS is intended for the study of outer space and the development of technology for deep space flights. Created on the basis of the Soyuz manned spacecraft. In September 1968, Zond-5 flew around the moon along a ballistic trajectory; there were live turtles and other biological samples on board the station, which returned safely to Earth. Zond-5 and Zond-8 landed in the Indian Ocean. Zond-6 and Zond-7 carried out a ricocheting entry into the Earth's atmosphere, which allowed them to land on the territory of the USSR. |
| Rebounding entry into the atmosphere The reentry vehicle should enter the atmosphere within a narrow corridor 10 km wide and descend to an altitude of 45 km above the Earth's surface. The device was oriented in such a way that an aerodynamic lift was created, pushing it back into space, followed by re-immersion into the atmosphere over the territory of the USSR, completed by parachute landing. |  |
In September next year for the first time there was a flight on the Earth - Moon - Earth route. The Luna-16 station made a soft landing in the Sea of Plenty and, with the help of a special soil sampling device, took samples of the lunar soil and delivered them to Earth for research. Then, two months later, the flight of the Luna-17 station followed, which made a huge impression on Western specialists by delivering a remotely controlled vehicle to the Sea of Rains to move on the lunar surface. This eight-wheeled vehicle "Lunokhod-1", controlled by television and radio channels, traveled a total of 10 540 m in 10 months, transmitting television images of the surrounding area and periodically examining the physical and mechanical properties of the lunar pound and its chemical composition. In January 1973, the Luna-21 station delivered Lunokhod-2 to the territory of the Lemonnier crater near eastern border Seas of Clarity. During five Earth months, Lunokhod traveled 37 km long, carrying out all the crew's commands from the Control Center.  Station "Luna-16" 1 The returned vehicle. 2 Retainer strap fastening. 3 Antenna on the take-off stage. 4 Take-off stage instrument compartment. 5 Takeoff stage fuel tanks. 6 Telephotometer. 7 Instrument compartment of the landing stage. 8 The bar of the soil intake device. 9 Soil intake device. 10 One main and two control rocket engines of the landing stage (not visible in this view). 11 Landing racks. 12 Disc supports. 13 Landing stage fuel tanks. 14 Low-thrust rocket motors for in-flight control. 15 Takeoff stage rocket engine (in the figure, it is closed by the instrument compartment). 16 Low directional antenna at the landing stage. The first AMS to deliver lunar soil samples to Earth. It landed in the Sea of Plenty (0 ° 41 "S, 56 ° 18" E) on September 20, 1970. An automatic soil intake device with a capture distance of 0.9 m was designed to extract rock from a depth of 35 cm. At the site of entry into the Earth's atmosphere, a parachute was deployed, whip antennas and metal "arrows" were exposed to facilitate radar. Airborne beacon signals were received by aircraft and helicopters of the search and rescue service. Specifications |
Lunokhod-2 (Luna-21)
1 Magnetometer.
2 Low directional antenna.
3 Shotgun antenna.
4 Antenna pointing mechanism.
5 Solar battery (converts solar energy into electricity for recharging chemical batteries).
6 Hinged cover (closed during movement and during the moonlit night).
7 Panoramic telephoto cameras for horizontal and vertical viewing.
8 Isotope source of thermal energy with a reflector and a ninth wheel for measuring the distance traveled (at the back of the device).
9 Soil pick-up device (folded).
10 Whip antenna.
11 Motor wheel.
12 Sealed instrument compartment.
13 Analyzer of the chemical composition of the soil "Rifma-M" (X-ray spectrometer) in the folded position.
14 A stereoscopic pair of television cameras with hoods and dust caps.
15 Optical corner reflector (made in France)
16 TV camera with lens hood and dust cover.
Luna-21 made a soft landing on the territory of Lemonnier crater near the eastern border of the Sea of Clarity at 1 h 35 min Moscow time on January 16, 1973. The first period of lunar exploration began on January 17-18, when Lunokhod-2 began to move from the site landing in a southeast direction along basalt lava, bypassing craters and boulders. Panoramic images taken on Earth clearly showed the surrounding landscape, including the mountains bordering the Sea of Clarity.
Specifications
The length of the chassis is 221 cm. The track is 160 cm. The diameter of the wheel is 51 cm. The weight is 840 kg (almost 100 kg more than the mass of Lunokhod-1, which operated on the territory of the Sea of Rains for 10 months from November 17, 1970).
| CALENDAR OF LAUNCHING OF AUTOMATIC INTERPLANETARY STATIONS TO THE MOON (some of the launched objects) | ||||
| NAME APPARATUS | DATE OF STARTING | ROCKET-CARRIER | WEIGHT, KG | MAIN RESULTS AND FEATURES OF THE FLIGHT |
| Pioneer 1 (USA) "Pioneer-3" (USA) "Luna-1" (USSR) "Pioneer-4" (USA) Luna-2 (USSR) Ranger 1 (USA) Ranger 2 (USA) Ranger 3 (USA) Ranger 4 (USA) | 11 oct. 1958 g. | "Thor-Able" "Juno-2" "Juno-2" Atlas-Agena Atlas-Agena Atlas-Agena Atlas-Agena | 38 | Attempt to launch into a circumlunar orbit. Accident at an altitude of 113,800 km above southern part The Pacific An attempt to fly near the moon. Accident at an altitude of 102,320 km over Central Africa The first AMS launched into the lunar region. Having flown at a distance of 5000 km from the Moon, the device entered the near-solar orbit Flyby at a distance of 60,500 km from the Moon and entry into a near-solar orbit First reaching the lunar surface Flyby at a distance of 6200 km from the lunar surface. Photographed 70% of the surface of the far side of the Moon. The resulting images are transmitted by a television system to Earth. An attempt to test the apparatus in high earth orbit. Reached only low Earth orbit An attempt was made to obtain seismic data during a hard landing. Having received excess speed, the device flew at a distance of 36 800 km from the Moon An attempt was made to obtain seismic data during a hard landing. Tracked the hit of the device on the opposite side of the moon |
| Ranger 5 (USA) Luna-4 (USSR) Ranger 6 (USA) Ranger 7 (USA) Ranger 8 (USA) Ranger 9 (USA) Luna-5 (USSR) "Zond-3" (USSR) "Centaurus-3" (USA) |
18 oct. 1962 g. | Atlas-Agena Atlas-Agena Atlas-Agena Atlas-Agena Atlas-Agena A-2 Atlas-Centaurus |
341 | An attempt was made to obtain seismic data during a hard landing. The device entered the near-solar orbit, having flown at a distance of 725 km from the Moon Passage at a distance of 8500 km from the lunar surface and entry into a near-solar orbit An attempt was made to obtain close-up television images before falling to the surface. The device fell to the surface without transferring a single image Over 4,300 high-resolution images transmitted before falling into the Sea of Knowledge 7137 high-resolution images transmitted before falling into the Sea of Tranquility 5814 high-resolution images transmitted before the fall on the moon into Alphonse crater The station reached the Moon at a point with coordinates 31 ° S, 8 ° E. Flyby at a distance of 160,000 km from the Moon with entry into a near-solar orbit Passage of the Moon and entry into the near-solar orbit. Images of the regions of the far side of the Moon that were not photographed were transferred Launching a dynamic model of the Surveyor spacecraft into high near-earth orbit. Flight design tests of the Centaurus rocket unit |
| Luna-7 (USSR) Luna-8 (USSR) Luna-9 (USSR) Luna-10 (USSR) "Surveyor-1" "Explorer-33" "Lunar Orbiter-1" Luna-11 (USSR) "Surveyor-2" |
4 oct. 1965 g. | A-2 Atlas-Centaurus "Delta" with force Atlas-Centaurus |
1506 | The station reached the lunar surface at a point with coordinates 9 ° N, 40 ° W. The station reached the lunar surface at a point with coordinates 9 ° 8 "N, 63 ° 18" W. The first soft landing on the Moon at a point with coordinates 7 ° 8 "N, 64 ° 33" W. Television panoramas and radiation data were transmitted. ALS weight 100 kg The first artificial satellite of the Moon with a mass of 245 kg. Transmitted information from an elliptical orbit (350 X 1017 km) with an orbital period of 178 minutes and an inclination of 71 ° 9 "for 56 days Soft landing at 2 ° 27 "S, 43 ° 13" W. 11,237 TV images and technical information transmitted over 6 weeks Attempt to launch into a circumlunar orbit. The spacecraft entered a near-earth elliptical orbit (15,900 X 435,000 km). Received information about particles and fields The device entered a circumlunar elliptical (40 X 1865 km) orbit with an inclination of 12 ° 12 ". 211 television images of photographs of the lunar surface were transmitted |
| "Centaurus-5" (USA) "Lunar Orbiter-2" Luna-13 (USSR) "Lunar Orbiter-3" "Surveyor-3" "Lunar Orbiter-4" "Surveyor-4" "Lunar Orbiter-5" "Surveyor-5" |
26 oct. 1966 g. | Atlas-Centaurus Atlas-Agena Atlas-Agena Atlas-Centaurus Atlas-Agena Atlas-Centaurus "Delta" with force Atlas-Centaurus |
726 | Launching into high near-earth orbit with a massive mock-up of the Surveyor spacecraft. Flight tests of restarting the engine of the "Centaurus" block The device entered a circumlunar elliptical orbit (40 X 1845 km) with an inclination of 11 ° 48 ". 184 television images of photographs of possible landing sites of the Apollo spacecraft were transmitted Soft landing on the Moon at the point with coordinates 18 ° 52 "N, 62 ° 3" W. Television panoramic images and radiation data were transmitted. Soil study carried out The spacecraft entered a circumlunar elliptical orbit (40 x 1850 km) with an inclination of 21 °. 182 television images of photographs of the lunar surface transmitted Soft landing on the Moon at 2 ° 56 "S, 23 ° 20" W. 6,315 television images and technical information were transmitted. Mass on the lunar surface 283 kg The spacecraft entered a circumlunar elliptical orbit (2704 x 6033 km) with an inclination of 85 °. 163 television images of the lunar surface transmitted Trying a soft landing. Fell at a point with coordinates 0 ° 26 "N, 1 ° 20" W. The spacecraft entered a circumlunar elliptical orbit (804 x 7400 km) with an inclination of 147 °. Information about particles and fields transmitted The spacecraft entered a circumlunar elliptical orbit (196x6014 km) with an inclination of 85 °. 213 TV images of the surface transmitted |
| "Surveyor-6" (USA) "Surveyor-7" "Zond-4" (USSR) Luna-14 (USSR) "Zond-5" (USSR) "Zond-6" (USSR) Luna-15 (USSR) Luna-16 (USSR) "Zond-8" (USSR) |
7 nov. 1967 year | Atlas-Centaurus "Atlas-Centaur" D-1-e |
1008 | Soft landing at a point with coordinates 0 ° 25 "N, 1 ° 20" W. 30,065 TV images and results of chemical analysis of soil were transmitted Soft landing at 40 ° 53 "S, 11 ° 26" W. near the edge of Tycho crater. 21,274 television images and the results of chemical analysis of the soil of the continental region of the Moon were transmitted Test flight. The device entered the near-solar orbit. The station entered a circumlunar elliptical orbit (160 x 870 km) with an orbital period of 160 min and an inclination of 42 ° Orbiting the Moon and returning to Earth. The device splashed down in Indian Ocean Orbiting the Moon and returning to Earth. The device made a controlled ricochet descent and returned to the territory of the USSR The station has reached the surface of the moon A flyby of the Moon with a return to Earth with a controlled descent. Delivery to Earth of color photographs of the Moon and Earth from various distances For the first time, the return of lunar soil samples was carried out using the AMS. The samples were taken from the surface of the lunar sea at the point with coordinates 0 ° 41 "S, 56 ° 18" E. Orbiting the Moon and returning to Earth. Working out the option of returning to Earth from the side of the Northern Hemisphere. AMC splashed down in the ocean |
| Luna-17 (USSR) Satellite of the moon, Luna-19 (USSR) Luna-20 (USSR) Satellite of the moon, "Explorer-49" Luna-22 (USSR) Luna-24 (USSR) |
10 nov. 1970 year | D-1-e "Saturn-5" "Saturn-5" "Delta" with force |
For the first time, the automatic vehicle "Lunokhod-1" moved along the lunar surface in the area of the point with coordinates 38 ° 18 "N, 35 ° W. The mass of Lunokhod-1 is 756 kg, the mass of the landing stage is 1080 kg, the total mass is payload on the lunar surface 1836 kg Particle and Field Information The station reached the lunar surface at a point with coordinates 3 ° 34 "N, 56 ° 30" E. Delivery to the Moon of the Lunokhod-2 spacecraft weighing 840 kg; landing at a point with coordinates 25 ° 54 "N, 30 ° 30" E Satellite of the Moon. An extensive program of maneuvers carried out |
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Observations from orbit
The last stage of preparation for the flights of the Apollo spacecraft was a detailed survey from the orbit of the terrain in the region of the lunar equator. For this purpose, five artificial lunar satellites "Lunar Orbiter" were prepared, each of which was equipped with a photographic system. The vehicles were launched during the Surveyors' flights and were also used to select their landing sites.
With the help of the propulsion systems "Lunar Orbiter", intermediate corrections of the trajectory of its flight to the Moon were carried out, and subsequently the transition to a circumlunar orbit was ensured.
The initial elliptical orbits usually had the heights of perilune and aposet, respectively, 200 and 1850 km. After several days of preparation for photography, the altitude of the perilune was reduced to 50 km. Each device had a stock of 80 m long film for 210 frames. After the exposure, the film was processed on board, the negative was read, and the images were transmitted to the Earth every 40 min.
On the ISL "Lunar Orbiter-1", unusable (blurry) photographs were obtained using a high-resolution camera. The moderate-resolution camera functioned normally, and thus 75% of the mission was completed: the possible landing areas of the Apollo spacecraft with a total area of 41,500 km2, 360,000 km2 of adjacent and 5,200,000 km2 of remote areas were photographed.
During the flight of the Lunar Orbiter-2 ISL, 184 images of thirteen possible landing sites of the Apollo spacecraft were obtained, the rest of the frames covered adjacent and remote areas.
With the help of the Lunar Orbiter-3 ISL, 182 images were obtained, after which the tape drive engine failed. The photographs included images of ten possible landing areas for the Apollo spacecraft. On the basis of these images, it was no longer a search, but a choice of a landing site. In addition, Surveyor 1, 1,550,000 km 2 of the adjacent and 650,000 km 2 of the outer lunar territory were photographed. These studies completed the main task of surveying the landing sites of the Surveyor and Apollo vehicles.
Based on this, the Lunar Orbiter-4 and -5 ISLs were launched into circumpolar orbits in order to take photographs of the rest of the Moon, as well as review non-equatorial landing areas for spacecraft under the alleged, but subsequently canceled Post-Apollo program. During the flights of "Lunar Orbiter-4" only 163 images were received, and from "Lunar Orbiter-5" - all 213 images. The photographs covered about 99% of the lunar surface.
With the help of the Lunar Orbiter ISL, information was also obtained on the micrometeorite and radiation conditions, and tracking their orbits made it possible to compile detailed map the gravitational field of the moon.
Another spacecraft, Explorer-35, was launched into the lunar orbit to study the radiation situation. He confirmed the almost complete absence of a magnetic field and did not find any radiation belts or ionosphere around the Moon. This meant that, unlike the Earth, nothing on the Moon prevents the destructive effect of the solar wind on its surface.
The next stage of flights of automatic stations
The last unmanned interplanetary station launched by the United States in January 1968 to support the Apollo program was Surveyor 7. There were 18 months left before the launch of the first Apollo spacecraft with landing on the Moon.
In the spring of 1968, the Soviet Union launched the automated space station Zond-4 on a trajectory that eventually entered an orbit around the Sun. Six months later, Zond-5 flew around the moon and returned to Earth, splashing down in the Indian Ocean. On board were terrestrial living creatures - turtles. Two months later, Zond-6 repeated this operation, making a rebounding entry into the atmosphere and landing on the territory of the USSR. Later, Zond-7 and Zond-8 were launched. The Zond spacecraft were modified versions of the three-seat Soyuz spacecraft without a crew, but with biological samples. The purpose of the launches of the automatic interplanetary stations "Zond-4" - "Zond-8" was to conduct flight-design testing in the automatic version of the spacecraft for circling the Moon, carrying out scientific research and return to Earth at a second cosmic speed.
In the USSR, the study of the moon continued with the help of automatic stations of the "Luna" series. As before, the heavier Luna stations of the new generation were a unified structure designed for the installation of a specialized payload. Luna-16 had four spherical fuel tanks, providing a speed change of 2.6 km / s for descent from a circumlunar orbit to the surface, and four cylindrical fuel tanks, providing a speed change of 1 km / s for entering a circumlunar orbit and performing orbital maneuvers.
The new family of Luna stations is divided into three groups: vehicles designed to deliver lunar soil samples to Earth, lunar rovers and lunar satellites. The first of this family was successfully launched on July 13, 1969, three days before the flight of the Apollo-11 spacecraft, the Luna-15 apparatus. After four days of flight, it entered a circumlunar orbit, where it remained for several days, twice making orbit corrections. Scientific research was carried out in the near-lunar space, information was obtained on the operation of the new systems of the station, which ensure landing in the given regions of the Moon. Upon completion of 52 orbits around the Moon, the braking system was activated, the station left orbit and fell on the lunar surface in a given area.
14 months later, the first automatic operation of delivery of lunar soil samples was carried out by Luna-16, a soft landing of which was made on September 20, 1970 in the Sea of Plenty region. A special soil intake device on a long rod was lowered onto the lunar surface. The hollow rotary percussion drill went 0.35 m deep into the ground, filling the cavity. After that, the soil intake device was raised to the take-off stage and placed in the return capsule. 105 g of "sea" soil was delivered to the Earth. While performing the same task, the Luna-20 station managed to deliver 55 g of continental rock to the Earth. After that, the soil intake device was significantly modified and during the flight of "Luna-24" the drill was submerged to a depth of almost 2 m. In the cavity of the drill there was an elastic shell, which, as it deepened, was filled, as when stuffing a sausage. At the end of drilling, the filled casing (8 mm in diameter, 1600 mm long) was removed, rolled up, like a cable on a winch, and packed into a return vehicle. The unloaded drilling device was thrown from the upper part of the vehicle, the take-off stage engines were started, providing vertical ascent and acceleration to a speed of 2.7 km / s. The location of soil sampling was chosen in such a way that, after leaving the zone of attraction of the Moon, the take-off stage would find itself on the trajectory of a direct hit on the Earth, thereby eliminating the need for an intermediate correction. Over time, the take-off stage was improved, which made it possible to take soil samples not only near the equator at 56 ° E. e. Three days later, the returned capsule returned to Earth, and soil samples weighing 0.17 kg were removed for research.
When the station "Luna-17" was launched, the task of moving along the lunar surface was set for the first time. After a successful landing, a special ladder was lowered from the landing stage of the bea for the eight-wheeled cart "Lunokhod-1" to descend to the lunar surface. This was one of the most important Soviet experiments in lunar exploration; Lunokhod-1 covered more than 10.5 km during ten months of operation. During a lunar day, the lid on the upper part of the Lunokhod hull was folded back, and the element solar battery located on its inner side, generated electricity. During two weeks on a moonlit night, the lid was closed and the circulation of air heated by an isotope heat source provided internal thermostatting. Lunokhod-1 was equipped with two, and Lunokhod-2 with three television cameras, allowing five operators on Earth to control the movement of the apparatus. Lunokhod stopped periodically to broadcast a full panorama of the surrounding area on television. Soil studies were also carried out: physical mechanical properties with a mechanical soil gauge and chemical composition with an X-ray spectrometer. An optical corner reflector, consisting of 14 elements, made it possible to carry out laser measurements of the distance between the Earth and the Moon with an accuracy of 40 cm.
Lunokhod-2 was delivered to the moon by the Luna-21 station, which made a soft landing on the territory of the Lemonnier crater with a diameter of 55 km. This ancient crater was once filled with lava, and only part of its edge remained on the surface. Thus, it combines the properties of the lunar sea and the mainland. The Lunokhod's route ran first southward into a transitional relief zone, and then eastward to a long break in the rock, reminiscent of the Hadley furrow, which the Apollo 15 astronauts surveyed. During the five months of its active existence, Lunokhod-2 has traveled 37 km.
The station "Luna-18", launched in September 1971, carried out maneuvers in orbit in order to develop methods of circumlunar navigation and landing on the moon, and then reached the moon near the border of the Sea of Plenty. In February 1972, the Luna-20 station landed in the hard-to-reach mainland region between the Sea of Abundance and the Sea of Crises; on this flight, lunar soil samples were delivered to Earth.
Luna-19 was launched into a circumlunar circular orbit with an altitude of 140 km above the lunar surface, and then transferred to a new orbit with parameters 135 X 127 km. From this orbit, images of the area with boundaries 30 - 60 ° S were obtained. NS. and 20 - 30 ° east. as well as the results of studying the radiation and micrometeorite conditions. Observations of the evolution of the orbit during the first two months of the active existence of the satellite made it possible to reveal the asymmetry of the northern and southern hemispheres of the Moon. In February 1972, the Luna-20 station landed in the hard-to-reach mainland region between the Sea of Abundance and the Sea of Crises; on this flight, lunar soil samples were delivered to Earth.
During the flight of the station "Luna-22" during 18 months of its active existence, an extensive program of maneuvers in a circumlunar orbit and a survey of the lunar surface were carried out. In addition, the surface gamma radiation was measured in order to reveal its detailed chemical composition. Tracking the parameters of the orbit helped to determine the characteristics of the anomalies of the Moon's gravitational field, caused by local concentrations of dense rocks. Over such an area, the spacecraft experiences a stronger pull, leading to a slight curvature of the orbit.
The Luna-24 station landed in the southeastern part of the Sea of Crises; Samples of lunar soil were delivered to Earth from a depth of about 2 m.
Another American spacecraft was launched into circumlunar orbit, but not for exploration of the Moon. It was the Explorer-49 radio astronomy satellite, equipped with four 230 m long antennas that, when fully deployed, formed a giant X-shaped figure. In circumlunar orbit, this device recorded celestial radio sources in the absence of Earth's background noise. The coordinates of the sources could be fixed by the time of the disappearance and reappearance of signals from behind the moon.
Like billions of years ago, the Moon continues to revolve around the Earth. At almost thirty points on its surface, there is evidence of the presence of a man: automatic devices created by his hands and the tracks of twelve astronauts from six Apollo ships. The information received made it possible to find answers to many important questions about the Moon, but at the same time much more new questions arose. Over time, man, new instruments and mechanisms will return to the Moon, possibly for the construction of permanent bases, which will become a reality thanks to the knowledge acquired with the help of automatic devices that have made flights to the Moon over the past decades.
January 2, 1959 Soviet space rocket for the first time in history, it reached the second cosmic speed required for interplanetary flights, and brought the automatic interplanetary station "Luna-1" to the lunar trajectory. This event marked the beginning of the "lunar race" between the two superpowers - the USSR and the USA.
"Luna-1"
On January 2, 1959, the USSR launched the Vostok-L carrier rocket, which put the automatic interplanetary station Luna-1 on the lunar trajectory. The AMC flew at a distance of 6 thousand km. from the lunar surface and entered a heliocentric orbit. The purpose of the flight was to reach the lunar surface by Luna-1. All onboard equipment worked correctly, but an error crept into the flight cyclogram, and the AMP did not hit the lunar surface. This did not affect the effectiveness of onboard experiments. During the flight of "Luna-1", it was possible to register the outer radiation belt of the Earth, for the first time measure the parameters of the solar wind, establish the absence of a magnetic field on the Moon and conduct an experiment to create an artificial comet. In addition, "Luna-1" became a spacecraft that managed to reach the second cosmic speed, overcame gravity and became an artificial satellite of the Sun.
"Pioneer-4"
On March 3, 1959, the American Pioneer-4 spacecraft was launched from the Cape Canaveral cosmodrome, which was the first to fly around the Moon. A Geiger counter and photoelectric sensor for photographing the lunar surface were installed on board. The spacecraft flew at a distance of 60 thousand kilometers from the Moon at a speed of 7,230 km / s. For 82 hours "Pioneer-4" transmitted data on the radiation situation to the Earth: no radiation was found in the lunar vicinity. Pioneer 4 was the first American spacecraft to overcome gravity.
"Luna-2"
On September 12, 1959, the automatic interplanetary station "Luna-2" was launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome, which became the first station in the world to reach the lunar surface. AMK did not have its own propulsion system. Of the scientific equipment, Geiger counters, scintillation counters, magnetometers and micrometeorite detectors were installed on the Luna-2. Luna-2 delivered a pennant with the emblem of the USSR to the lunar surface. A copy of this pennant N.S. Khrushchev presented it to US President Eisenhower. It is worth noting that the USSR demonstrated the Luna-2 model at various European exhibitions, and the CIA was able to gain unlimited access to the model to study possible characteristics.
"Luna-3"
On October 4, 1959, the Luna-3 AMS was launched from Baikonur, the purpose of which was to study outer space and the Moon. During these flights, for the first time in history, photos of the far side of the moon were obtained. The mass of the Luna-3 spacecraft is 278.5 kg. On board the spacecraft were installed telemetric, radio engineering and phototelemetric orientation systems, which made it possible to orientate relative to the Moon and the Sun, an energy supply system with solar batteries and a complex of scientific equipment with a photographic laboratory.
Luna-3 made 11 revolutions around the Earth, and then entered the Earth's atmosphere and ceased to exist. Despite the low quality of the images, the photographs obtained provided the USSR with priority in naming objects on the lunar surface. This is how the circuses and craters of Lobachevsky, Kurchatov, Hertz, Mendeleev, Popov, Sklodowska-Curie and the lunar sea of Moscow appeared on the map of the moon.
"Ranger-4"
On April 23, 1962, the American automatic interplanetary station Ranger 4 was launched from Cape Canaveral. AMC carried a 42.6 kg capsule containing a magnetic seismometer and a gamma spectrometer. The Americans planned to drop the capsule in the Ocean of Storms region and conduct research for 30 days. But the onboard equipment was out of order, and Ranger 4 was unable to process the commands that came from the Earth. The flight duration of the AMS "Ranger-4" is 63 hours and 57 minutes.
"Luna-4S"
On January 4, 1963, the Molniya carrier rocket launched the Luna-4S spacecraft into orbit, which was supposed to make a soft landing on the lunar surface for the first time in the history of space flights. But the start towards the Moon did not take place for technical reasons, and on January 5, 1963, Luna-4S entered the dense layers of the atmosphere and ceased to exist.
Ranger 9
On March 21, 1965, the Americans launched Ranger 9, the mission of which was to obtain detailed photos of the lunar surface in the last minutes before a hard landing. The device was oriented in such a way that the central axis of the cameras completely coincided with the velocity vector. This was to avoid "blurring the image".
17.5 minutes before the fall (the distance to the lunar surface was 2360 km), 5814 television images of the lunar surface were obtained. The work of Ranger-9 received the highest marks of the world scientific community.
"Luna-9"
On January 31, 1966, the Soviet Luna-9 spacecraft was launched from Baikonur, which on February 3 made the first soft landing on the Moon. AMC landed in the Ocean of Storms. 7 communication sessions took place with the station, the duration of which was more than 8 hours. During communication sessions Luna-9 transmitted panoramic images of the lunar surface near the landing site.
Apollo 11
On July 16-24, 1969, the flight of the American manned spacecraft of the Apollo series took place. This flight is famous primarily for the fact that earthlings for the first time in history landed on the surface of a cosmic body. On July 20, 1969 at 20:17:39, the ship's lunar module on board with crew commander Neil Armstrong and pilot Edwin Aldrin landed in the southwestern part of the Sea of Tranquility. Astronauts made an exit to the lunar surface, which lasted 2 hours 31 minutes 40 seconds. Command module pilot Michael Collins was waiting for them in circumlunar orbit. The astronauts planted the US flag at the landing site. The Americans placed a set of scientific instruments on the lunar surface and collected 21.6 kg of lunar soil samples, which were delivered to Earth. It is known that after their return, the crew members and lunar samples underwent strict quarantine, which did not reveal any lunar microorganisms.
Apollo 11 led to the achievement of the goal set by US President John F. Kennedy - to land on the moon, overtaking the USSR in the lunar race. It is worth noting that the fact of the landing of the Americans on the lunar surface raises doubts among modern scientists.
"Lunokhod-1"
November 10, 1970 from the Baikonur cosmodrome Luna-17. On November 17, AMS landed in the Sea of Rains, and the world's first rover, the Soviet remote-controlled self-propelled vehicle "Lunokhod-1", which was designed to explore the Moon and worked on the Moon for 10.5 months (11 lunar days).
During its operation, Lunokhod-1 covered 10,540 meters, moving at a speed of 2 km / h, and surveyed an area of 80 thousand square meters. He transmitted 211 lunar panoramas and 25 thousand photos to the earth. For 157 sessions with the Earth, Lunokhod-1 received 24,820 radio commands and performed a chemical analysis of the soil at 25 points.
On September 15, 1971, the resource of the isotope heat source was exhausted, and the temperature inside the sealed container of the Lunokhod began to drop. On September 30, the device did not get in touch, and on October 4, scientists stopped trying to get in touch with it.
It is worth noting that the battle for the moon continues today: the space powers are developing the most incredible technologies by planning.
Tags
Soviet automatic stations "Luna"
"Luna-1"- the world's first AMS launched into the region of the Moon on January 2, 1959. Having passed near the Moon at a distance of 5-6 thousand km from its surface, on January 4, 1959 AMS left the sphere of gravity and turned into the first artificial planet of the solar system with parameters: perihelion 146.4 million km and aphelion 197.2 million km. The final mass of the last (3rd) stage of the launch vehicle (LV) with the AMS "Luna-1" is 1472 kg. The mass of the "Luna-1" container with equipment is 361.3 kg. The AMS housed radio equipment, a telemetry system, a set of instruments and other equipment. The devices are designed to study the intensity and composition of cosmic rays, the gaseous component of interplanetary matter, meteoric particles, corpuscular radiation from the Sun, and the interplanetary magnetic field. At the last stage of the rocket, the apparatus was installed for the formation of a sodium cloud - an artificial comet. On January 3, at a distance of 113,000 km from Earth, a visually observed golden-orange sodium cloud was formed. During the flight "Luna-1" the second cosmic velocity was reached for the first time. Strong streams of ionized plasma have been registered for the first time in interplanetary space. In the world press, AMS Luna-1 was named Dream.
"Luna-2" September 12, 1959 made the world's first flight to another celestial body. On September 14, 1959, the Luna-2 spacecraft and the last stage of the launch vehicle reached the lunar surface (west of the Sea of Clarity, near the craters Aristille, Archimedes and Autolycus) and delivered pennants with the State Emblem of the USSR. The final mass of the AMS with the last stage of the launch vehicle is 1511 kg with the mass of the container, as well as the scientific and measuring equipment 390.2 kg. An analysis of the scientific information obtained by Luna-2 showed that the Moon practically does not have its own magnetic field and radiation belt.
Moon-2
"Luna-3" launched on October 4, 1959. The final mass of the last stage of the LV with the AMS "Luna-3" is 1553 kg, with a mass of scientific and measuring equipment with power sources of 435 kg. The equipment included the following systems: radio engineering, telemetry, photo-television, orientation relative to the Sun and the Moon, power supply with solar batteries, temperature control, as well as a complex of scientific equipment. Moving along a trajectory enveloping the moon, the AMC passed at a distance of 6200 km from its surface. On October 7, 1959, the far side of the Moon was photographed from the Luna-3. Cameras with long- and short-focus lenses captured almost half of the surface of the lunar ball, one third of which was in the edge zone of the side visible from the Earth, and two thirds - on the invisible side. After processing the film on board, the obtained images were transmitted by the photo-television system to Earth when the station was at a distance of 40,000 km from it. The flight "Luna-3" was the first experience of studying another celestial body with the transmission of its image from the spacecraft. After flying around the Moon, the AMS moved into an elongated, elliptical orbit of the satellite with an apogee altitude of 480 thousand km. Having completed 11 revolutions in orbit, it entered the earth's atmosphere and ceased to exist.
Moon-3
"Luna-4" - "Luna-8"- AMS, launched in 1963-65 for further exploration of the Moon and development of a soft landing on it of a container with scientific equipment. Experimental testing of the entire complex of systems providing a soft landing, including astro-orientation systems, control of onboard radio equipment, radio control of the flight path and autonomous control devices, was completed. The mass of the AMS after separation from the booster stage of the RN is 1422-1552 kg.
Moon-4
Luna-9- AMS, for the first time in the world, carried out a soft landing on the Moon and transmission of an image of its surface to the Earth. Launched on January 31, 1966, a 4-stage LV using the satellite reference orbit. The automatic lunar station landed on February 3, 1966 in the Ocean of Storms region, west of the craters Reiner and Mari, at the point with coordinates 64 ° 22 "W and 7 ° 08" N. NS. The panoramas of the lunar landscape were transmitted to the Earth (at different angles of the Sun above the horizon). 7 radio communication sessions (more than 8 hours long) were carried out to transmit scientific information. The AMS operated on the Moon for 75 hours. Luna-9 consists of an AMS designed to operate on the lunar surface, a control equipment compartment and a propulsion system for trajectory correction and deceleration before landing. The total mass of the "Luna-9" after being placed on the flight path to the Moon and separated from the booster stage of the launch vehicle is 1583 kg. The mass of the AMS after landing on the moon is 100 kg. Its sealed housing contains: television equipment, radio communication equipment, a program-time device, scientific equipment, a thermal control system, and power supplies. The images of the lunar surface transmitted by Luna 9 and the successful landing were crucial for future flights to the Moon.
Moon 9
Luna-10- the first artificial satellite of the Moon (ISL). It was launched on March 31, 1966. The mass of the AMS on the flight path to the Moon is 1582 kg, the mass of the ISL, separated on April 3 after the transition to a selenocentric orbit, is 240 kg. Orbital parameters: perilune 350 km, aposetments 1017 km, orbital period 2 h 58 min 15 sec, inclination of the plane of the lunar equator 71 ° 54 ". Active work equipment for 56 days. During this time, the ISL made 460 orbits around the Moon, 219 radio communication sessions were carried out, information was obtained about the gravitational and magnetic fields of the Moon, the Earth's magnetic trail, which was repeatedly hit by the Moon and the ISL, as well as indirect data on the chemical composition and radioactivity of surface lunar rocks. From the ISL the melody of the "Internationale" was transmitted to Earth by radio, for the first time - during the 23rd Congress of the CPSU. For the creation and launch of the Luna-9 and Luna-10 AMS, the International Aviation Federation (FAI) awarded Soviet scientists, designers and workers with an honorary diploma.
Moon-10
"Luna-11"- the second ISL; launched on August 24, 1966. AMC weight 1640 kg. On August 27, Luna-11 was transferred to a circumlunar orbit with the following parameters: perilune 160 km, aposetments 1200 km, inclination 27 °, orbital period 2 h 58 min. The ISL made 277 turns, having worked for 38 days. Scientific instruments continued the exploration of the Moon and near-lunar space, begun by the Luna-10 ISL. 137 radio communication sessions were carried out.
Moon 11
"Luna-12"- the third Soviet ISL; launched on October 22, 1966. Orbital parameters: perilune about 100 km, apostles 1740 km. The mass of the AMS in the ISL orbit is 1148 kg. Luna-12 actively operated for 85 days. On board the ISL, in addition to scientific equipment, there was a high-resolution photo-television system (1100 lines); with its help, large-scale images of areas of the lunar surface in the area of the Sea of Rains, the Aristarchus crater and others were obtained and transmitted to the Earth (craters up to 15-20 m in size differ, and individual objects up to 5 m in size). The station functioned until January 19, 1967. 302 radio communication sessions were conducted. At the 602nd orbit, after the flight program was completed, radio communication with the station was interrupted.
Moon-12
"Luna-13"- the second AMS to make a soft landing on the moon. Launched on December 21, 1966. On December 24, it landed in the Ocean of Storms at the point with selenographic coordinates 62 ° 03 "west longitude and 18 ° 52" n. NS. The mass of the AMS after landing on the moon is 112 kg. With the help of a mechanical soil meter, dynamometer and radiation density meter, data on the physical and mechanical properties of the surface layer of the lunar soil were obtained. Gas-discharge counters that registered cosmic corpuscular radiation made it possible to determine the reflectivity of the lunar surface for cosmic rays. 5 large panoramas of the lunar landscape were transmitted to the Earth at different heights of the Sun above the horizon.
Moon-13
Luna-14- the fourth Soviet ISL. Launched on April 7, 1968. Orbital parameters: perilune 160 km, aposet 870 km. Clarification of the ratio of the masses of the Earth and the Moon was carried out; investigated the gravitational field of the moon and its shape by the method of systematic long-term observations of changes in the parameters of the orbit; the conditions for the passage and stability of radio signals transmitted from the Earth to the ISL and back were studied at different positions relative to the Moon, in particular, when approaching the lunar disk; measured cosmic rays and streams of charged particles coming from the Sun. Received Additional Information to build an accurate theory of the motion of the moon.
Luna-15 launched on July 13, 1969, three days before the launch of Apollo 11. The purpose of this station was to take samples of the lunar soil. She entered lunar orbit simultaneously with Apollo 11. If successful, our stations could take soil samples and for the first time make a start from the Moon with a return to Earth earlier than the Americans. In the book by Yu.I. Mukhin "Anti-Apollo: the US lunar scam" says: "although the probability of a collision was much lower than in the sky over Lake Constance, the Americans asked the USSR Academy of Sciences about the parameters of the orbit of our AMS. They were informed. For some reason, the AMC hung out in orbit for a long time. Then she made a hard landing on the regolith. The Americans won the competition. How? What do these days of "Luna-15" circling the Moon mean: malfunctions on board or ... negotiations of some authorities? Did our AMC crash on its own, or was it helped to do it? " Only Luna-16 was able to take soil samples.
Moon-15
Luna-16- AMS, which made the first flight Earth - Moon - Earth and delivered samples of lunar soil. Launched on September 12, 1970. On September 17, it entered a selenocentric circular orbit with a distance of 110 km from the lunar surface, an inclination of 70 °, an orbital period of 1 hour 59 minutes. Subsequently, the difficult task of forming a pre-landing orbit with low perilune was solved. A soft landing was made on September 20, 1970 in the Sea of Plenty region at the point with coordinates 56 ° 18 "E and 0 ° 41" S. NS. The soil intake device provided drilling and soil sampling. The Moon-Earth rocket was launched from the Moon on a command from the Earth on September 21, 1970. On September 24, the reentry vehicle was separated from the instrument compartment and landed in the calculated area. Luna-16 consists of a landing stage with a soil intake device and a Luna-Earth space rocket with a reentry vehicle. The mass of the AMS when landing on the lunar surface is 1880 kg. The landing stage is an independent multi-purpose rocket unit with a liquid rocket engine, a system of tanks with fuel components, instrument compartments and shock-absorbed supports for landing on the lunar surface.
Moon-16
"Luna-17"- AMC, which delivered the first automatic mobile scientific laboratory"Lunokhod-1". Luna-17 launch - November 10, 1970, November 17 - soft landing on the Moon in the region of the Sea of Rains, at a point with coordinates 35 ° W. d. and 38 ° 17 "N lat.
During the development and creation of the lunar rover, Soviet scientists and designers faced the need to solve a complex of complex problems. It was necessary to create completely new type a machine capable of operating for a long time in unusual conditions of open space on the surface of another celestial body. The main tasks: creation of an optimal propulsion device with high cross-country ability at low mass and energy consumption, providing reliable work and traffic safety; remote control systems for the movement of the Lunokhod; providing the necessary thermal conditions using a thermal control system that maintains the temperature of the gas in the instrument compartments, structural elements and equipment located inside the sealed compartments and outside them (in open space during lunar days and nights) within the specified limits; selection of power supplies, materials for structural elements; development of lubricants and lubrication systems for vacuum conditions and more.
Scientific equipment L. s. a. was supposed to ensure the study of topographic and selenium-morphological features of the area; determination of the chemical composition and physical and mechanical properties of the soil; investigation of the radiation situation on the flight path to the Moon, in the circumlunar space and on the surface of the Moon; X-ray cosmic radiation; experiments on laser ranging of the moon. The first L. s. a. - the Soviet "Lunokhod-1" (Fig. 1), intended for a large complex of scientific research on the lunar surface, was delivered to the Moon by the automatic interplanetary station "Luna-17" (see Error! Reference source not found.), worked on it surface from November 17, 1970 to October 4, 1971 and passed 10540 m. "Lunokhod-1" consists of 2 parts: an instrument compartment and a wheeled chassis. The mass of Lunokhod-1 is 756 kg. The sealed instrument compartment has a frusto-conical shape. Its body is made of magnesium alloys providing sufficient strength and lightness. The upper part of the compartment is used as a radiator-cooler in the thermal control system and is closed with a lid. During the moonlit night, the cover covers the radiator and prevents heat radiation from the compartment. During a lunar day, the lid is open, and the solar battery elements located on its inner side provide recharging of the batteries supplying the onboard equipment with electricity.
The instrument compartment contains thermal control systems, power supplies, receiving and transmitting devices of the radio complex, devices of the remote control system and electronic converting devices of scientific equipment. In the front part there are: portholes for television cameras, an electric drive of a movable highly directional antenna used to transmit television images of the lunar surface to the Earth; a low-directional antenna providing reception of radio commands and transmission of telemetric information, scientific instruments and an optical corner reflector made in France. On the left and right sides there are installed: 2 panoramic telephoto cameras (moreover, in each pair one of the cameras is structurally combined with a local vertical determinant), 4 whip antennas for receiving radio commands from the Earth in a different frequency range. An isotope source of thermal energy is used to heat the gas circulating inside the apparatus. Next to it is a device for determining the physical and mechanical properties of the lunar soil.
Sharp temperature changes during the change of day and night on the surface of the Moon, as well as a big difference temperatures between the parts of the apparatus located on the Sun and in the shade, necessitated the development of special system thermoregulation. At low temperatures During the moonlit night, to heat the instrument compartment, the circulation of the coolant gas along the cooling circuit is automatically stopped and the gas is directed to the heating circuit.
The power supply system of the Lunokhod consists of solar and chemical buffer batteries, as well as automatic control devices. The solar battery is controlled from the Earth; the cover can be adjusted to any angle between zero and 180 ° required to maximize the use of solar energy.
The on-board radio complex receives commands from the Control Center and transfers information from the aircraft to the Earth. A number of systems of the radio complex are used not only when working on the lunar surface, but also during the flight from the Earth. Two television systems L. s. a. serve to solve independent tasks... The system of low-frame television is designed to transmit television images of the terrain to the Earth, which are necessary for the crew, which controls the movement of the Lunokhod from the Earth. The possibility and expediency of using such a system, which is characterized by a lower image transmission rate compared to the broadcast television standard, was dictated by specific lunar conditions. The main one is a slow change in the landscape when the lunar rover moves. The second television system is used to obtain a panoramic image of the surrounding area and survey areas starry sky, Sun and Earth for the purpose of astro orientation. The system consists of 4 panoramic telephoto cameras.
The self-propelled chassis provides a solution to a fundamentally new problem in astronautics - the movement of an automatic laboratory on the lunar surface. It is designed in such a way that the lunar rover has a high cross-country ability and operates reliably for a long time with a minimum dead weight and power consumption. The chassis ensures the movement of the lunar rover forward (with 2 speeds) and backward, turns in place and in motion. It consists of a running gear, an automation unit, a traffic safety system, a device and a set of sensors for determining the mechanical properties of the soil and assessing the passability of the chassis. Turning is achieved due to different speeds of rotation of the wheels of the right and left sides and a change in the direction of their rotation. Braking is carried out by switching the chassis traction motors to the electrodynamic braking mode. To keep the lunar rover on the slopes and to stop it completely, electromagnetic-controlled disc brakes are activated. The automation unit controls the movement of the lunar rover by radio commands from the Earth, measures and controls the main parameters of the self-propelled chassis and the automatic operation of instruments for studying the mechanical properties of the lunar soil. The traffic safety system provides an automatic stop at the limit angles of roll and trim and overloads of the electric motors of the wheels.
The device for determining the mechanical properties of the lunar soil allows you to quickly receive information about the soil conditions of movement. The distance traveled is determined by the number of revolutions of the drive wheels. To take into account their slippage, an amendment is made, determined with the help of a freely rolling ninth wheel, which is lowered to the ground by a special drive and rises to starting position... The vehicle is controlled from the Center for Long-Range Space Communication by a crew consisting of a commander, driver, navigator, operator, flight engineer.
The driving mode is selected as a result of evaluating television information and promptly arriving telemetry data on the amount of roll, trim of the distance traveled, the state and modes of operation of the wheel drives. In conditions space vacuum, radiation, significant temperature differences and difficult terrain along the route, all systems and scientific instruments of the Lunokhod functioned normally, ensuring the implementation of both the main and additional programs of scientific research of the Moon and outer space, as well as engineering and design tests.
Moon-17
"Lunokhod-1" examined the lunar surface in detail over an area of 80,000 m2. For this purpose, more than 200 panoramas and over 20,000 images of the surface were obtained with the help of television systems. The physical and mechanical properties of the surface layer of the soil were studied at more than 500 points along the route of movement, and the analysis of its chemical composition was carried out at 25 points. The cessation of the active operation of Lunokhod-1 was caused by the depletion of the resources of its isotope heat source. At the end of the work, it was placed on an almost horizontal platform in such a position in which the corner reflector provided many years of laser ranging from the Earth.
"Lunokhod-1"
"Luna-18" launched on September 2, 1971. In orbit, the station carried out maneuvers in order to develop methods of automatic circumlunar navigation and ensure landing on the moon. Luna-18 completed 54 orbits. 85 radio communication sessions were carried out (checking the operation of systems, measuring the parameters of the trajectory of movement). On September 11, the braking propulsion system was activated, the station de-orbited and reached the Moon in the mainland surrounding the Sea of Plenty. The landing site was selected in a mountainous area of great scientific interest. Measurements showed that the landing of the station in these difficult topographic conditions turned out to be unfavorable.
Luna-19- the sixth Soviet ISL; launched on September 28, 1971. On October 3, the station entered a selenocentric circular orbit with parameters: altitude above the lunar surface 140 km, inclination 40 ° 35 ", orbital period 2 h 01 min 45 sec. On November 26 and 28, the station was transferred to a new orbit. systematic long-term observations of the evolution of its orbit in order to obtain the necessary information to clarify the gravitational field of the moon. The characteristics of the interplanetary magnetic field in the vicinity of the moon were continuously measured. photographs of the lunar surface were transmitted to the earth.
Luna-19
Luna-20 launched on February 14, 1972. On February 18, as a result of deceleration, it was transferred to a circular selenocentric orbit with the following parameters: altitude 100 km, inclination 65 °, orbital period 1 h 58 min. On February 21, she made a soft landing on the lunar surface for the first time in the mountainous continental region between the Sea of Abundance and the Sea of Crises, at a point with selenographic coordinates 56 ° 33 "east longitude and 3 ° 32" n. NS. Luna-20 is similar in design to Luna-16. The soil sampling mechanism drilled the lunar soil and took samples, which were placed in the container of the reentry vehicle and sealed. On February 23, a space rocket with a reentry vehicle was launched from the Moon. On February 25, the Luna-20 reentry vehicle landed in the design area of the USSR. Samples of lunar soil were delivered to Earth, taken for the first time in the hard-to-reach mainland region of the Moon.
"Luna-21" delivered to the lunar surface "Lunokhod-2". The launch took place on January 8, 1973. Luna 21 made a soft lunar landing on the eastern edge of the Sea of Clarity, inside Lemonnier Crater, at 30 ° 27 "E and 25 ° 51" N. NS. On January 16, I descended from the Luna-21 landing stage down the ladder "Lunokhod-2".
"Luna-21"
On January 16, 1973, Lunokhod-2 was delivered to the region of the eastern outskirts of the Sea of Clarity (the ancient Lemonnier crater) with the aid of the Luna-21 automatic station. The choice of the specified landing area was dictated by the expediency of obtaining new data from the complex junction zone of the sea and the mainland (and also, according to some researchers, in order to verify the reliability of the fact of the American landing on the moon). Improving the design of on-board systems, as well as the installation of additional devices and the expansion of the capabilities of the equipment made it possible to significantly increase maneuverability and carry out a large amount of scientific research. In 5 lunar days in difficult terrain conditions Lunokhod-2 covered a distance of 37 km.
"Lunokhod-2"
Luna-22 was launched on May 29, 1974 and entered lunar orbit on June 9. Served as an artificial moon satellite, exploration of the lunar space (including the meteorite environment).
"Luna-23" was launched on October 28, 1974 and soft-landed on the moon on November 6. Probably, its launch was timed to coincide with the next anniversary of the Great October Revolution. The tasks of the station included the capture and study of the lunar soil, but the lunar landing took place in an area with an unfavorable relief, because of which the soil intake device broke. On November 6-9, the studies were carried out according to an abbreviated program.
Luna-24 was launched on August 9, 1976 and landed on August 18 in the Sea of Crises region. The mission of the station was to take the "sea" lunar soil (despite the fact that the "Luna-16" took the soil on the border of the sea and the mainland, and "Luna-20" - on the mainland). The takeoff module with lunar soil was launched from the Moon on August 19, and on August 22, the capsule with the soil reached the Earth.
Luna-24
