Russia's first moon mission in nearly half a century has ended in disaster as the Luna 25 probe spun out of control and crashed into the moon. Russia was racing to land on the lunar South Pole before a rival Indian Mission expected to arrive next week. The Far Side of the Moon, seen from a Russian spacecraft, showed the Luna 25 entering orbit last Thursday, where it had been searching for the ideal landing site near the South Pole. The launch earlier this month from Russia's Far East Cosmodrome marked a new beginning for Moscow's moon program. It has been nearly 50 years since the last Luna probe, number 24, traveled to the Moon and back, to what was then the Soviet Union, carrying lunar soil samples.
The journey to the launch pad this time took longer than expected; liftoff was delayed by nearly two years. One major reason was the war in Ukraine. Before the invasion, the European Space Agency was set to supply the spacecraft's navigation camera, but the war put a stop to the partnership. As a result, Russia stated that it would not share any of its scientific findings with its former international partners.
Russia is not the only player in what is fast becoming a 21st-century space race. NASA is planning to bring humans back to Earth's closest neighbor within a few years and build a base there for future exploration of the cosmos. Russia, China, Japan, and India have similar plans for lunar outposts, but to achieve them, they all need water, which can be turned into breathable oxygen among many other uses. That's why they are all heading for the moon's South Pole. In this yet unexplored region, the sun sits low on the horizon, the craters can be many kilometers deep with high peaks keeping sunlight out, leaving the depths in perpetual darkness, with temperatures dropping to minus 200 degrees Celsius – perfect conditions for ice.
This month, the race to the moon is coming down to the wire. India's lunar craft is just days away from its attempt at a soft landing on the South Pole. It was launched four weeks before Russia's unmanned space mission but took a longer route. It was a redo of India's first attempt to reach the moon, which ended in a crash four years ago. And now, it's Russia that has crashed out, narrowing the competition for the remaining contenders.
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| Russia's Luna-25 moon lander being prepped for launch. (Image credit: NPO Lavochkina) |
The journey to the launch pad this time took longer than expected; liftoff was delayed by nearly two years. One major reason was the war in Ukraine. Before the invasion, the European Space Agency was set to supply the spacecraft's navigation camera, but the war put a stop to the partnership. As a result, Russia stated that it would not share any of its scientific findings with its former international partners.
Russia is not the only player in what is fast becoming a 21st-century space race. NASA is planning to bring humans back to Earth's closest neighbor within a few years and build a base there for future exploration of the cosmos. Russia, China, Japan, and India have similar plans for lunar outposts, but to achieve them, they all need water, which can be turned into breathable oxygen among many other uses. That's why they are all heading for the moon's South Pole. In this yet unexplored region, the sun sits low on the horizon, the craters can be many kilometers deep with high peaks keeping sunlight out, leaving the depths in perpetual darkness, with temperatures dropping to minus 200 degrees Celsius – perfect conditions for ice.
This month, the race to the moon is coming down to the wire. India's lunar craft is just days away from its attempt at a soft landing on the South Pole. It was launched four weeks before Russia's unmanned space mission but took a longer route. It was a redo of India's first attempt to reach the moon, which ended in a crash four years ago. And now, it's Russia that has crashed out, narrowing the competition for the remaining contenders.
To know more about Luna-25 visit- Russia's Luna-25 Mission- Objectives ,Instruments, Budget & Luna 25 vs Chandrayaan-3