Russia has decided to postpone its Lunar 25 lunar mission
The Russia is ultimately not going to land a spacecraft on the Moon This year. Indeed, on Wednesday September 7, the 1er responsible for Roscosmos, Yuri Borisovannounced the postponement of the Luna 25 mission. The latter, who was to leave during the month of September, will not be launched until 2023.
According to the information, this decision was made due to poor results obtained by a distance and speed sensor during testing. The sensor in question has the role of allowing a soft landing on the lunar surface. The faulty sensor was manufactured by Vega Concern who is a member of the holding company Ruselectronicsitself owned by Rostech State Corporation.
It’s the aerospace company NPO Lavochkin who built and tested the Russian lunar lander. The launch date of the mission has already been postponed several times since it was due to take off last year, then in May, August and September of this year. Now, we will have to wait until 2023.
A first for modern Russia
For modern Russia, the Luna 25 mission is the first mission to target the Moon. It is expected to land in a region of the lunar South Pole close to Boguslavsky crater. Russian scientists have also planned a reserve landing site located southwest of the Manzini crater.
Scientific objectives
The Luna 25 mission will aim to study the upper layer of the surface of the Moon and the atmosphere of the latter. It will also help in the development of landing technologies and soil sampling. The device is expected to last for at least one Earth year on the surface of the Moon.
This mission serves as a sequel to the series begun during the era of Soviet Union. The lunar exploration activities of the latter indeed stopped with the end of the mission. Moon 24this one having allowed to bring 170 g of lunar soil back to Earth.
After Luna 25, it will be the turn of Luna 26 orbiter to leave. Moon 27, meanwhile, will send a vehicle to the lunar surface. The next step, after these missions, will be the deployment of a scientific base on the Moon. This project will be done in collaboration with China.
SOURCE: Space.com
