Haim Mazar's historical review takes us back to the sixties to the unmanned Luna spacecraft that the Russians bombarded the moon with (in some cases - literally)
Luna 1
The first Russian spacecraft that was launched to the moon was Luna 1 (the original name of the spacecraft was Makta). The spacecraft was launched on January 2, 1959 and its goals were to hit its equator 60 hours after launch, and transmit information about space during the flight. The weight of the spacecraft was 1,833 kg. The instrument compartment weighed 361 kg of the spacecraft's weight. The spacecraft moves at a speed of 40,000 km/h. Due to a tiny deviation from the flight path, the spacecraft missed the moon by 5,955 km and continued its journey into the depths of space until it was captured by the sun's gravity. Luna 1 entered an elliptical orbit around the Sun when its distances from it are 197-145.5 km. The whole orbit of the Sun lasted 477 days. The spacecraft transmitted its findings until it reached a distance of 600,000 km from Earth. Luna 1 was launched to mark the 25th Congress of the Communist Party on January 27.
Luna 2
On September 12, 1959, the spacecraft was launched and its goal was to hit the moon. The weight of the spacecraft was 1,360 kg. The instrument compartment weighed 390 kg of the spacecraft's weight. The spacecraft had a powerful transmitter, sensitive devices for measuring the radiation in space, electric batteries made of zinc and mercury, an automatic heating mechanism that maintained a constant temperature of 20 degrees inside the spacecraft and a special device for emitting a glowing sodium cloud that made it possible to monitor and correct deviations from the orbit. 35 hours after the launch on September 14, the spacecraft crashed in the sea of rain, between the Archimedes crater and the Autolycus crater, 83 seconds late. The signals received from it before impact did not indicate a lunar magnetic field. The spacecraft bore the hammer and sickle symbol.
Luna 3
On October 4, 1959, the spacecraft was launched to photograph the hidden side of the moon. Due to the purpose and nature of the flight, the spacecraft was called by its launchers the "Automatic Interstellar Station". The weight of the spacecraft was 1,500 kg. The instrument compartment weighed 280 kg of the spacecraft's weight. The spacecraft had two 33 mm film cameras and an automatic development laboratory that was in the center of the spacecraft. On October 7, the spacecraft was 6,200 km from the moon and photographed its hidden side for 40 minutes. After that she returned to Earth and at a distance of 20,000 km from it she transmitted the images using special radio facilities for transmitting images. It turned out that most of the surface on the far side of the moon is flat and there are few high mountains and deep craters. The Soviet Union published three photographs. Two places were named "Moscow Sea" and "Sea of Dreams". At the end of the filming mission, the spacecraft did not return to Earth. Instead it entered a looping orbit around the Earth and the Moon. The orbit of the spacecraft was elliptical. The epigeo point from the Earth was 480,000 km, so entering the Moon's gravitational field was done without border corrections. On May 19, 1960, the spacecraft entered the atmosphere and burned up.
Luna 4
On April 2, 1963, the spacecraft was launched. She weighed 1,422 kg. It was launched from a satellite that was previously placed in a parking orbit around the Earth. On April 6, the spacecraft passed at a distance of 8,500 km from the surface of the moon. The experiments conducted by the spacecraft were done after a solution was found to a series of technical problems related to the conquest of the moon (this was the original wording of the Russians at the time) - landing on its surface. When the spaceship was at a distance of 8500 km from it, contact with it was lost. At the end of its mission, the spacecraft entered orbit around the Earth with the perigee point at 90,000 km. Over time the Sun's gravity increased and the spacecraft entered orbit around it.
Luna 5
On May 9, 1965, the spacecraft was launched from a satellite placed in a parking orbit around the Earth. Going to the moon was on the day of the launch. The weight of the spacecraft was 1,476 kg and it had automatic equipment for receiving and recording information, a television camera and instruments for chemical research of the moon. The spacecraft was supposed to land on its surface on May 12 after 83 hours of flight. 11 minutes before landing, the spacecraft's signals stopped. The spacecraft's engines ignited too late at a distance of 64 km from the ground and the spacecraft crashed on the surface of the moon in the sea of clouds, five minutes too early.
Luna 6
The spacecraft was launched on June 8, 1965 with the aim of landing on the moon. The weight of the spacecraft was 1,442 kg. It had a television camera and instruments for chemical research of the lunar soil. The spacecraft deviated from its course and several attempts were made to return it to the flight path. For this purpose, a special mechanism was activated. The engine did start, but it ran longer than planned. The spaceship's flight speed was too great and because of that it missed the moon. The spacecraft passed at a distance of 160,000 km from it and entered orbit around the sun.
Luna 7
On October 3, 1965, the spacecraft was launched to land on the moon. The weight of the spacecraft was 1,500 kg. It had a television camera and instruments for chemical research of the moon. 86 hours after the launch on October 7, the braking engines were activated. Their ignition was shortly before planned and because of this the fuel supply ran out while the spaceship was at a high altitude above the ground. She did land, but heavily. The electronic systems crashed and the spacecraft stopped working. A few seconds before the crash in the ocean of storms, some photographs were broadcast from the surface.
Luna 8
On December 3, 1965, the spacecraft was launched. The weight of the spacecraft was 1,551 kg and it had a television camera and instruments for chemical research of the lunar soil. She was supposed to make a soft landing. On December 6, after 83 hours of flight, the spacecraft was supposed to land on the ground. The landing was not soft enough and due to that it stopped working. The crash was in the ocean of storms.
Luna 9
After four failures, the Soviet Union (now Russia) managed to land an unmanned spacecraft on the moon. It was the Luna 9 spacecraft that was launched on January 31, 1966. After the launch, the spacecraft entered a terrestrial parking orbit with its launch point being 157.5 km and the apogee point being 185 km. In this orbit, the spacecraft's systems were tested and after they were found to be working, the engine of the last stage of the launch vehicle was ignited which put the spacecraft on a flight path that would bring it to the moon.
The spacecraft weighing 1,600 kg contained an "automatic station" - a lander, at the top of the propulsion and braking section. The weight of the landing gear is 100 kg, and the top of the propulsion and braking section has a diameter of 0.6 meters. During the flight, the spacecraft deviated somewhat from the flight path and there was a fear that this deviation would increase to a distance of 15,000 km from the surface of the moon. Following this, instructions were transmitted to the spacecraft to perform a required course correction. On February 3, after 79 hours of flight, the spacecraft landed in the "Ocean of Storms" west of the Marius and Reina craters. At a distance of 75 km from the lunar surface, the electronic altimeter activated the powerful braking motor. 48 seconds of braking thrust were needed to slow the spacecraft from 9,000 km/h to a landing speed of 15 km/h. Shortly before landing, the "automatic station" was disconnected from the braking mechanism and fell nearby, protected by shock absorbers. The lander rolled a few meters and then stopped in a shallow crater. The sheath opened and positioned the lander so that the axis of rotation of the camera was perpendicular to the ground. At the same time, four antennas, each 1.25 meters long, were pulled out of it and broadcast to Israel the news of the successful landing. The sheath has four parts, (in the form of leaves) and it plays the role of landing legs.
The broadcasts began 4 minutes and 10 seconds after landing. The images were very clear. The pictures show the craters of the moon, small stones that cast long and sharp shadows and objects a few centimeters in size. Among the photographs that were broadcast, a stone or a similar body can be seen 15 meters away from the lander as well as parts of it. In total, the spacecraft transmitted 30 panoramic photographs from three different illumination angles of the sun in three days. The filming was concentrated at the eastern end of the "Ocean of Storms". The resolution of the camera is 1-2 mm.
Space scientists have learned from these images that the surface of the moon is a hard, porous surface that is strewn with sharp rocks and tiny stones. The depth of this soil reaches 6-10 meters. It is similar in its structure to an artificial foam material. This lunar material called "Lonite" is not found on Earth. It consists of volcanic ash and meteoric material whose density is similar to that of water. At a depth of one meter its temperature is 35 degrees below zero. At a depth of a few meters the temperature is 20 degrees higher. The ground at the landing site is solid enough to support the heavy weight of research and manned spacecraft. The spacecraft's instruments discovered unknown minerals and gold. The batteries stopped working before the end of the lunar day.
Luna 10
On March 31, 1966, the spacecraft was launched. On April 3, the spacecraft entered orbit around the moon, which is 349-1,017 km from the ground, the inclination angle is 72 degrees, and the orbit lasted 58 hours and 1,600 minutes. When the spacecraft entered orbit around the moon, its transmissions stopped, but resumed a few minutes later. The weight of the spacecraft was 245 kg. The instrument compartment weighed 10 kg of this weight. After entering orbit around the moon, the instrument compartment detached from the spacecraft. It had instruments for studying solar plasma streams, gamma and infrared radiation from the surface and testing the chemical composition of the soil. A television camera for transmitting 15 photographs of the surface, a magnetometer for investigating the magnetic field of the moon whose sensitivity is 2 times greater than that of Luna XNUMX and the investigation of micro meteorites. Other equipment that was in the instrument cabin included radio equipment and a telemetry system, a heat and power system and micro motors to stabilize the cabin in its orbit. One of the main goals of the flight was to test the best method of putting spacecraft into orbit around the moon.
The spacecraft's instruments showed that the Moon has a weak magnetic field, although homogeneous and regular, a radiation belt whose strength is 1/100,000 that of the Earth. The radiation near the moon is not an obstacle for manned flights to it. The meteoroid particles around the moon are denser than in outer space. In the space near the moon there are electron currents whose strength is tens of thousands of electrovolts. The concentration of gamma rays is higher in the rocks of the Moon than in the rocks of the Earth. The radiation originates from uranium, thorium and radioactive potassium and is similar to terrestrial basalts. Topographically, the "lakes" are elongated on the hidden side.
A slight twirl was felt in the spacecraft while it circled the moon, but this did not hinder it in fulfilling its mission. The spacecraft completed its mission after the 460th lap (on the 52nd day) with the depletion of its batteries.
Luna 11
On August 24, 1966, the spacecraft was launched. Its weight is 1,640 kg. On August 28, Luna 11 entered an orbit around the moon that is 160-2,000 km from the ground, the inclination angle is 27 degrees and the duration of the orbit is 58 hours and XNUMX minutes. This time a low inclination angle was chosen to study sites close to the equator. The purpose of the flight was to continue the research of previous spacecraft - improving the techniques for putting spacecraft into orbit around the moon and conducting scientific research in the lunar environment.
Due to the results of Luna 10's measurements, it is slightly different from Luna 11's and it included:
1. A device for absorbing gamma rays emitted from the face of the moon to test the chemical composition of the rocks.
2. A device for testing the fluorescence of X-rays from the surface of the moon to test the chemical elements found in its rocks.
3. TV cameras that should have broadcast from August 30.
4. Device for testing the magnetic field of the moon.
5. A device for testing the variability of satellite orbits.
6. An instrument for investigating physical phenomena.
6. Astronomical radio device for testing long cosmic radio waves.
On October 1, after 177 laps, Luna 11 began an uncontrolled roll and stopped working.
Luna 12
On October 22, 1966, the spacecraft was launched. The weight of the spacecraft is 1,640 kg. It was equipped with instruments designed to study the conditions of existence of satellites around the moon and the study of the space around it. On October 25, the spacecraft entered orbit around the moon, which is 100-1,739 km from the ground, and the entire orbit lasted three hours and 25 minutes. Like Luna 11, Luna 12 also began an uncontrolled rollover. This time the space scientists managed to fix the malfunction. During her flight she encountered communication difficulties. On January 19, 1967, contact with the spacecraft was lost. Luna 12 photographed Aristarchus Crater, where the researchers were particularly interested, and the Sea of Rain. The photographs show craters with a diameter of 15 meters. Luna 12 tested the emission of gamma rays from its surface, tested the radiation conditions around the moon, its magnetic field and meteorite explosions near it. Luna 12 also tested an electronic engine for a future lunar all-terrain vehicle - the Lunahud.
Luna 13
On December 21, 1966, the spacecraft was launched with the aim of continuing the research of Luna 12 and landing on the moon. During the flight several course corrections were made to the latter. After a flight of 80 hours, it landed on the 25th Luna 13 in the Sea of Storms. At a distance of 70 km from the surface of the moon, the braking engines were activated. After landing, the spacecraft transmitted images of its surroundings. The first photographs show small craters and rough bumps on a background of pebbles. The size of the stones is tens of centimeters. The panoramic photographs indicate the absence of dust in the landing area. All photos were of good quality. The spacecraft has two arms, each 1.5 meters long, which were deployed after landing and their purpose was to measure the strength of the soil by sticking them into the ground and the specific gravity of the lunar rocks and the radioactivity of the surface. using a special device that was attached to these rods. Six days after landing, contact with the spacecraft was lost.
Luna 14
On April 7, 1968, the spacecraft was launched and on July 10, it entered a lunar orbit whose distance from the ground is 160-870 km, the angle of inclination is 42 degrees and the duration of the moon's orbit is 40 hours and XNUMX minutes. The spacecraft was launched from a terrestrial parking orbit. The spacecraft must continue to explore the moon and its surroundings, test its gravity and magnetic field, test the relationship between the masses of the Earth and the moon, measure the stability of radio signals sent to the spacecraft at different locations relative to the moon and conduct the most advanced tests of the electronic motor of the lonchud wheels. The spacecraft collected material on the movement of the moon to allow researchers to develop a theory to explain this phenomenon and it also measured particles from the sun. It turned out that man could wean himself from the deadly effects of cosmic radiation on the surface of the moon, by building shelters at its bottom.
Luna 15
On July 13, 1969, the spacecraft was launched from a satellite orbiting the Earth. The goals of the flight were:
1. Land on the moon, collect soil samples and return to Earth.
2. To conduct the system experiments of the automatic space station.
3. Do a scientific study of the moon and its surroundings.
This spacecraft had many instruments, which increased its weight and the duration of its flight compared to its predecessors. Luna 15 flew 102 hours until it reached the moon, 20 hours more than its predecessors. During the flight the instruments of the spacecraft were checked and only one course correction was made. On July 17, it reached the moon and entered an elliptical orbit around it, which is 56-204 km from the ground, the inclination angle is 127 degrees and the whole revolution takes 30 hours and 19 seconds. On July 16, the spacecraft's trajectory was changed a second time. The flight route is 106-112 km and the duration of the trip is XNUMX minutes.
Unlike the previous spacecraft, Luna 15 could land in different areas by changing the lunar orbit. On July 21, the spacecraft completed 52 laps. At the end of the last lap, the braking engines were activated for landing. Various malfunctions led to the crash of the spaceship. The landing place was the Sea of Crisis. 800 km from the landing site of Apollo 11. Luna 15 hit the moon four minutes after landing, the impact speed was 380 km/h.
It should be noted that the radio signals from the spacecraft stopped four minutes before the takeoff of Apollo 11. There was a fear that the spacecraft's transmissions would cause interference with Apollo 11's communications, and at the request of the Americans, the Russians agreed not to cause interference.
