Russia successfully launched the Luna-25 station into space

On the night of August 11 from the Vostochny cosmodrome (Amur Region) launched launch vehicle "Soyuz-2.1b". Around 3:30 Moscow time Roscosmos reportedthat the station has separated from the Fregat upper stage and is moving towards the Moon.

Entry into lunar orbit at an altitude of 100 km from the satellite is expected on August 16, and landing on the Moon north of the Boguslavsky crater is expected on August 21-24. The location matters: previously, everyone landed on the moon only in the equatorial zone, which is more convenient in terms of the approach trajectory. Landing closer to the pole is technically more difficult. For the status of the first apparatus to land on the South Pole, Luna-25 will fight with the Indian station.Chandrayan-3”, the landing of which is scheduled for August 23-24.

The previous lunar mission, Luna 24, was carried out as early as 1976. She delivered 170 grams of lunar soil to Earth. Initially, the launch of Luna-25 was planned back in 2015, but it was repeatedly postponed.

The main goal of the mission is to work out a soft landing near the South Pole. It will be followed by several more launches of automatic stations in the period from 2027 to 2030. After that, Roscosmos, together with Chinese colleagues, expects to move on to the next phase: a manned visit to the moon and the construction of a lunar base.