ROSCOSMOS - Lunokhod-1 medal.
Nov. 9, 2020
Color photography of Lunokhod-1
Exactly 50 years ago, on November 10, 1970 at 17 hours 44 minutes 01 seconds, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome with the help of the "Proton-K" launch vehicle, the automatic space station "Luna-17" was launched, which delivered the first in the world to the moon a few days later. self-propelled vehicle "Lunokhod-1". The first three stages of the carrier and the upper stage ensured the launch of the spacecraft into the flight path to the Moon. The launch to the Moon was carried out from an intermediate near-earth orbit.
Members of the State Commission with the team of the "Lunokhod"
The Luna-17 spacecraft was designed to deliver the Lunokhod-1 self-propelled vehicle to the lunar surface and conduct scientific research on the lunar surface. It was completely controlled from the Earth and was created at Machine-Building Plant No. 301 named after S.A. Lavochkin (today - Research and Production Association named after S. A. Lavochkin, part of the State Corporation "Roscosmos").
Image above: Schematic of the internal fairing including Object E-8 (Lunokhod-1 at the landing stage) and Upper Stage D Scheme of the space warhead including Object E-8 (Lunokhod-1 at the landing stage) and upper stage "D".
On the flight path to the Moon on November 12 and 14, 1970, trajectory corrections were made. On November 15, when approaching the Moon, the engine was switched on for deceleration, and the Luna-17 station entered the orbit of an artificial lunar satellite with an altitude of 85 × 141 km with an orbital inclination to the lunar equatorial plane of 141 ° and an orbital period of 116 minutes. In order to create conditions for deorbiting on November 16, corrections were made, as a result of which the minimum altitude above the surface decreased to 19 km. On November 17, 1970, at 06:41, the brake engine was turned on, and at 06:46, 50 seconds, the Luna-17 station made a soft landing in the coastal region of the western part of the Sea of Rains, at the point with selenographic coordinates: 38 ° 24 's ... sh. and 34 ° 47 'W. etc.
Lunokhod-1 on the KT landing platform
After inspecting the landing site and deploying the ladders, an appropriate command was issued, and at 0928 hours Lunokhod-1 slid down the ladder from the landing platform onto the lunar soil. A new stage has begun in the study of a natural satellite of the Earth by automatic devices!
Lunokhod-1 at the Lavochkin Machine
The automatic self-propelled laboratory has started a program of scientific and technical research and experiments. During the first lunar day, the Luna-17 station landing area was studied. At the same time, the lunar rover systems were tested and the crew on Earth gained experience in driving. During this time, the lunar rover passed 197 meters along the lunar surface.
Lunokhod-1 block diagram
In the course of fulfilling the work program, in 116 motion sessions, Lunokhod-1 traveled a distance of 10,540 meters, which made it possible to examine in detail the lunar surface on an area of 80,000 m². The maximum travel speed was 2 km / h. During this time, 200 telephotometric panoramas and about 20 thousand pictures of low-frame television were transmitted to Earth. During the shooting, stereoscopic images of the most interesting features of the relief were obtained, allowing a detailed study of their structure.
ROSCOSMOS Press Release: https://www.roscosmos.ru/29547/
Images, Animation, Text, Credits: ROSCOSMOS/Lavochkin Machine/Orbiter.ch Aerospace/Roland Berga.
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