Russia will send the spacecraft to the moon. For the first time in 45 years

In 1976, the launch of the last Soviet interplanetary automatic station Luna-24 took place. Since then, Russia has never sent spacecraft to a single Earth satellite. According to representatives of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the launch date for the new Luna-25 apparatus has already been determined.

A 45-year pause will be interrupted by the launch of the new Russian Luna-25 apparatus. It will be sent from the cosmodrome on October 1, 2021. This was announced by the head of the Department of Nuclear Planetology of the Space Research Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences Igor Mitrofanov at a meeting of the RAS Council on Space.

“The name of our device“ Luna-25 ”continues the numbering of domestic lunar missions of the last century. The launch date will be October 30, 2021, ”Igor Mitrofanov.

In the vicinity of the lunar South Pole, the main region, located north of the Boguslavsky crater, and the reserve, southwest of the Manzini crater, were chosen. An ellipse with diameters of 15 by 30 kilometers is defined for landing.

The task of the Luna-25 apparatus will be to conduct scientific research on the properties and composition of the polar soil, as well as measure its mechanical characteristics. Earlier, no landings were made in the designated area. In 2024, Russia plans to send the Luna-26 orbital station to the Earth’s satellite, and in 2025, the Luna-27 landing station. Both projects are included in the current Federal Space Program.

In the years 2027-2028, the Russian Federation intends to send the Luna-28 heavy landing station and the Luna-29 transportation complex to move the heavy moon rover.