 Luna 17 imaged by theLRO in 2010 | |||||||||||||||||
| Mission type | Planetary Science | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operator | Soviet space program | ||||||||||||||||
| COSPAR ID | 1970-095A | ||||||||||||||||
| SATCATno. | 04691 | ||||||||||||||||
| Mission duration | 308 days | ||||||||||||||||
| Spacecraft properties | |||||||||||||||||
| Manufacturer | GSMZ Lavochkin | ||||||||||||||||
| Launch mass | 5,700 kg (12,600 lb)[1] | ||||||||||||||||
| Start of mission | |||||||||||||||||
| Launch date | 14:44:01, 10 November 1970 (UTC) (1970-11-10T14:44:01Z)[1] | ||||||||||||||||
| Rocket | Proton 8K82K withBlok D upper stage | ||||||||||||||||
| Launch site | Baikonur Cosmodrome | ||||||||||||||||
| End of mission | |||||||||||||||||
| Last contact | 13:05, 14 September 1971 (UTC) (1971-09-14T13:05:00Z) | ||||||||||||||||
| Moon orbiter | |||||||||||||||||
| Orbital insertion | 15 November 1970 | ||||||||||||||||
| Moon lander | |||||||||||||||||
| Landing date | 03:46:50, 17 November 1970 | ||||||||||||||||
| Landing site | 38°17′N35°00′W / 38.28°N 35.0°W /38.28; -35.0[2] | ||||||||||||||||
| Moon rover | |||||||||||||||||
| Spacecraft component | Lunokhod 1 | ||||||||||||||||
| Landing date | 06:28, 17 November 1970 | ||||||||||||||||
| Distance driven | 10.54 km (6.55 mi) | ||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||
Luna 17 (Ye-8 series) was anuncrewed space mission of theLuna program, also calledLunik 17. It deployed the first robotic rover onto the surface of theMoon.
Luna 17 was launched from theBaikonur cosmodrome on 10 November 1970. AProton K launch vehicle brought the spacecraft to aparking orbit around the Earth.[3] The upper stage of the launch vehicle then sent the spacecraft throughtrans-lunar injection.[4]Luna 17inserted into orbit around the Moon on 15 November. The spacecraftsoftly landed inMare Imbrium (the Sea of Rains) on 17 November 1970.
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The spacecraft had dual ramps by which the payload,Lunokhod 1, descended to the lunar surface.Lunokhod 1 was a lunar vehicle formed of a tub-like compartment with a large convex lid on eight independently powered wheels.Lunokhod 1 was equipped with a cone-shaped antenna, a highly directional helical antenna, four telerayspectrometer, anx-ray telescope,cosmic-ray detectors, and a laser retro-reflector (supplied by France[5]) was also included. The vehicle was powered by asolar cell array mounted on the underside of the lid.
Lunokhod 1 was intended to operate through three lunar days but actually operated for eleven lunar days (eleven Earth months). The operations of Lunokhod officially ceased on 4 October 1971, the anniversary ofSputnik 1, after having traveled over 10.5 kilometres (6.5 miles) while taking pictures and performing numerous tests.
Luna 17 continued the spate of successes in Soviet lunar exploration begun byLuna 16 andZond 8.Luna 17 carriedLunokhod 1, the first in a series of robot lunar roving vehicles whose conception had begun in the early 1960s, originally as part of the piloted lunar landing operations. This was the second attempt to land such a vehicle on the Moon after a failure in February 1969.
The descent stage was equipped with two landing ramps for the rover, to disembark onto the Moon's surface.
The 756-kilogram (1,666-pound-11-ounce) rover stood about 1.35 metres (4 feet 5 inches) high and was 2.15 metres (7 feet 1 inch) across. Each of its eight wheels could be controlled independently for two forward and two reverse speeds. Its top speed was about 100 metres per hour (0.062 mph), with commands issued by a five-man team of "drivers" on Earth who had to deal with the 5-second delay. The set of scientific instruments was powered by solar cells (installed on the inside of the hinged top lid of the rover) and chemical batteries.
After two mid-course corrections en route to the Moon,Luna 17 entered lunar orbit and then landed on the lunar surface at 03:46:50 UT on 17 November 1970 at 38°17' north latitude and 35° west longitude, about 2,500 kilometres (1,600 miles) from theLuna 16 site in theSea of Rains.
The Lunokhod 1 rover rolled over the ramps and onto the lunar surface at 06:28 UT. During its 322 Earth days of operation, the rover traveled 10.54 kilometres (7 miles) and returned more than 20,000 TV images and 206 high-resolution panoramas.
In addition,Lunokhod 1 performed twenty-five soil analyses with its RIFMA X-ray fluorescence spectrometer and used its penetrometer at 500 different locations.
Controllers finished the last communications session withLunokhod 1 at 13:05 UT on 14 September 1971. Attempts to reestablish contact were finally discontinued on 4 October.
In March 2010, theLunar Reconnaissance Orbiter photographed the landing site ofLuna 17, showing the lander and tracks of the rover.[6] In April 2010, theApache Point Observatory Lunar Laser-ranging Operation team announced that with the aid of these photos, they had found the long-lostLunokhod 1 rover and had received returns from the laserretroreflector.[7]
