| Ultimi arrivi - The Soviet "Moon Programme" |
Luna21-Horz12-1.jpgRover tracks and the far distant walls of LeMonnier Crater103 visitenessun commentoFeb 09, 2006
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Luna21-Horz10.jpgThe walls of LeMonnier Crater104 visiteOn June 4, 1973, the Soviet Authorities announced that the Program was completed, leading to speculation that the vehicle probably failed in mid-May or could not be revived after the lunar night of May-June.
The Lunokhod-2 was not left in a position such that the laser retro-reflector could be used, thus indicating that the failure may have happened suddenly. Feb 09, 2006
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Luna21-Horz05-1.jpgRover tracks and the far distant walls of LeMonnier Crater130 visiteAfter landing, the Lunokhod-2 took TV images of the surrounding area, then rolled down a ramp to the surface at 01:14 UT on 16 January and took pictures of the Luna 21 Lander and Landing Site. It stopped and charged batteries until 18 January, took more images of the Lander and Landing Site, and then set out over the Moon. The Rover would run during the Lunar Day, stopping occasionally to recharge its batteries via the solar panels. At night the Rover would hibernate until the next sunrise, heated by the radioactive source. Lunokhod-2 operated for about 4 months, covered 37 Km of terrain, including hilly upland areas and rilles, and sent back 86 panoramic images and over 80.000 TV pictures.
Many mechanical tests of the surface, laser ranging measurements and other experiments were completed during this time. Feb 09, 2006
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Luna21-Horz02-1.jpgThe "Nest" of Lunokhod-2154 visiteAt this point the main thrusters shut down and the secondary thrusters ignited, slowing the fall until the lander was 1,5 mt above the surface of the Moon, where the engine was cut off.
Landing occurred at 23:35 UT in LeMonnier Crater, located at 25,85° North and 30,45° East.
The Lander carried a bas relief of Lenin and the Soviet coat-of-arms.Feb 09, 2006
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Luna21-Horz01.jpgThe first picture of the Moon, from Luna-21: LeMonnier Crater113 visiteScientific instruments included a soil mechanics tester, solar X-ray experiment, an astrophotometer to measure visible and UV light levels, a magnetometer deployed in front of the Rover on the end of a 2,5 mt boom, a radiometer, a photodetector (Rubin-1) for laser detection experiments, and a French-supplied laser corner-reflector. The Lander and Rover together weighed 1814 Kg.
Mission Profile
The SL-12/D-1-e launcher put the spacecraft into Earth parking orbit followed by Translunar Injection. On 12 January 1973, Luna 21 was braked into a 90x100 Km orbit around the Moon. On 13 and 14 January, the perilune was lowered to 16 Km altitude. On 15 January, after 40 orbits, the braking rocket was fired at 16 Km altitude, and the craft went into free fall.
At an altitude of 750 mt, the main thrusters began firing, slowing the fall until a height of 22 mt was reached.Feb 09, 2006
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Luna21-E.jpgLuna 21 and Lunokhod 2: a new "Moon-Walk"100 visiteThe Lunar Rover stood 135 cm high and had a mass of 840 Kg. It was about 170 cm long and 160 cm wide and had 8 wheels, each with an independent suspension, motor and brake. The Rover had two speeds: ~1 km/hr and ~2 km/hr.
Lunokhod 2 was equipped with 3 TV cameras, one mounted high on the Rover for navigation, which could return HR images at different rates (3,2; 5,7; 10,9 or 21,1 seconds per frame). These images were used by a five-man team of controllers on Earth who sent driving commands to the Rover in real time.
Power was supplied by a solar panel on the inside of a round hinged lid which covered the instrument bay, which would charge the batteries when opened. A Polonium-210 isotopic heat source was used to keep the Rover warm during the Lunar Nights.
There also were 4 panoramic cameras mounted on the Rover.Feb 09, 2006
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Luna21-D.jpgLuna 21 and Lunokhod 2: a new "Moon-Walk"120 visiteThe Luna 21 spacecraft landed on the Moon and deployed the second Soviet Lunar Rover (Lunokhod 2). The primary objectives of the mission were to collect images of the Lunar Surface, examine ambient light levels to determine the feasibility of astronomical observations from the Moon, perform laser ranging experiments from Earth, observe solar X-rays, measure local magnetic fields, and study mechanical properties of the Lunar Surface material.Feb 09, 2006
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Zond-08-01.jpgEarthrise, from ZOND-8123 visiteZond-8 was launched from an Earth orbiting platform, Tyazheliy Sputnik (70-088B), towards the Moon, on October, 20, 1970. The announced objectives were the investigations of the Moon and Circum-Lunar Space and the testing of onboard systems and units. The spacecraft obtained photographs of the Earth on October 21, from a distance of 64.480 Km. The spacecraft transmitted flight images of the Earth for 3 days. Zond-8 flew past the Moon on October 24, 1970, at a distance of 1110,4 Km and obtained both b/w and color photographs of the Lunar Surface. Scientific measurements were also obtained during the flight.
Zond-8 reentered the Earth's atmosphere and splashed down in the Indian Ocean on October 27, 1970.Feb 08, 2006
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Zond-07-16.jpgThe surface of the Moon, from ZOND-7 (3)81 visitenessun commentoFeb 08, 2006
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Zond-07-15.jpgThe surface of the Moon, from ZOND-7 (2)111 visitenessun commentoFeb 08, 2006
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Zond-07-14.jpgThe surface of the Moon, from ZOND-7 (1)85 visitenessun commentoFeb 08, 2006
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Zond-06-03d.jpgLunar Surface from ZOND-6151 visiteLa qualità del frame migliora ed i rilievi anomali...svaniscono. Era dunque ingannevole il primo frame mentre questo è "genuino", o viceversa?!?... In ogni caso ci sembra che qualcosa, fra le due immagini, sia cambiata.
Verificate Voi stessi.
Note originali:"A crash landing on Earth flattened and broke open the film canister, but 52 photographs were recovered with some degree of laceration and fogging. Only a few fragments of Zond-6 images have been published. (...) Poor print quality, not film damage, is the reason for the low quality of some of the existing Zond-6 frames".Feb 08, 2006
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