Music Banter - View Single Post - Ad Astra: Trollheart's Guide to the Galaxy (And Beyond)

Trollheart · 10-11-2021, 12:11 PM

Note: The next probe to attempt a landing on the Moon was another Russian one, fifteenth in the successful Luna programme, but by now NASA had achieved the ultimate goal and landed humans on the Moon, so the Soviets were really playing catch-up, and perhaps trying to ignore the fact that they had been beaten.

Their first attempt, indeed a last-ditch one to try to pip the Americans to the post, was something of a disaster, and that's putting it mildly!

Luna 15
Launched: July 13 1969
Reached Destination: July 17 1969
Type: Lander
Nationality: Soviet (Russian)
Results: None
Photographs Taken: 0
Mission Ended: July 21 1969
Termination of Probe: Crashed into the Moon (unplanned)

Still trying to outdo the Americans and refusing to accept that they had won the race to the Moon literally hours earlier, the Soviets tried landing Luna 15 on the Moon to sample the soil, but lost contact with the probe as it descended, and it’s believed it may have hit one of the lunar mountains. I doubt there could be a more public humiliation for the USSR during the space race. While Armstrong and Aldrin, their historic mission completed, were preparing to lift off from the Moon, the Russians were crashing their attempt into a rock.

But they were nothing if not doggedly determined, and continued to send probes even as the Apollo programme gained traction and man walking on the Moon became almost a commonplace occurrence. Not really.

Luna 16
Launched: September 12 1970
Reached Destination: September 15 1970
Type: Lander
Nationality: Soviet (Russian)
Results: Soil samples taken
Photographs Taken: Unknown
Mission Ended: September 24 1970
Termination of Probe: Lander remains on the Moon, sample capsule returned to Earth.

Although the US Apollo mission beat them to it, this was the first time the Russians had managed to retrieve a soil sample from the Moon. After the probe landed, the soil sample was taken and put into the capsule, which a few days later took off again and headed for Earth. It was a very successful mission and a triumph for the USSR - just a pity the capitalists got there first, otherwise it might have made world headlines. Presumably it made Russian State Television news and the headline of Pravda...

Luna 17
Launched: November 10 1970
Reached Destination: November 15 1970
Type: Lander
Nationality: Soviet (Russian)
Results: Landed Lunokhod 1, the world’s first lunar rover, on the Moon’s surface
Photographs Taken: 0
Mission Ended: September 14 1971
Termination of Probe: Still on the Moon.

Luna 17 was the vehicle which carried Lunkhead, sorry Lunokhod 1 to the Moon and made it the first ever lunar rover to be deployed on the surface of the Moon, so at least they had that over the Americans. Lunokhod’s story is told below.

Lunokhod 1
Launched: November 10 1970
Reached Destination: November 17 1970
Type: Rover
Nationality: Soviet (Russian)
Results: Took thousands of pictures of the Moon from various vantage points, roamed across the surface taking soil samples.
Photographs Taken: 20,206
Mission Ended: September 14 1971
Termination of Probe: Remains on lunar surface

You’ve really got to feel for the Russians in one way. Only a few months before the hated Americans actually send men to walk on the surface of the Moon, making history, they’re still grappling with the logistics of getting a robotic rover there. I cam imagine the scene in February 1969 as they watch their rocket take off. “Hah! We will beat those decadent capitalists by getting our probe to the Moon and have it be the first to drive across the surface of a OH fuck! Look out comrade! That shit’s radioactive! Quick! Into this protective bunker! What? No, no time to warn the people! Fuck the people!”

A few months later it’s all over. The Americans have definitively won the Race to the Moon. But the Russkies keep going, sending a rover that this time gets there and take pictures, but by now nobody really cares. America and the USSR are like two bands struggling for recognition and fame, one of which ends up playing Madison Square Gardens, the other is still playing Madison’s Wine Bar in Queens or something.

The Russians have never come back from that massively humiliating defeat. After initial euphoria about Sputnik and their early successes, Russian space achievements seem to have completely tailed off, as if they’re just not interested any more, like a moody kid having lost the game kicking a can down the lane with his hands in his pockets muttering “Didn’t want to play that stupid game anyway” and desperately trying to convince himself that it doesn’t matter. Now Mars is the real target, but so far as I can see, Russia is not involved in those efforts (we’ll see in the next article) and space seems to more or less be in the hands of and under the control of the USA. As was once said in The Simpsons, the Moon belongs to America.

The Russians, though, seem not to have got the memo...

Luna 18
Launched: September 2 1971
Reached Destination: September 7 1971
Type: Lander
Nationality: Soviet (Russian)
Results: None
Photographs Taken: 0
Mission Ended: September 11 1971
Termination of Probe: Crashed into the Moon’s surface.

You would have to wonder how, this late in the game, the Soviets were still fucking it up. I guess we’ll see that the Apollo programme had its failures too, and nobody is saying the Americans’ attempts were flawless, but it seems almost like the roles have been reversed here. Initially, the Soviets got all the glory, got (nearly) everything right, reaped all the rewards, and the Americans were flailing in the dark, with launch after launched cancelled and mission after mission failing. But once the US got things sorted, everything - more or less - seems to have gone smoothly for them (with some notable exceptions) whereas the Russians almost seem to have regressed, suddenly having major problems, failed launches, crashed probes, exploding rockets… like NASA had mysteriously transferred their bad luck and poor planning to them.

Of course, much of this had to do with funding not being available, training being below par and a general antipathy, one would assume, at the Kremlin in the wake of Apollo 11. They might have been thinking “we’ve been beaten, what’s the point in continuing to try?” and given less attention and care to their launches as maybe they should have. Either way, so far as I can see here, they never really recovered, and this was not a minor setback but almost a total defeat by and capitulation to the USA.

Not that it stopped them trying, of course.

Luna 19
Launched: September 28 1971
Reached Destination: October 2 1971
Type: Orbiter
Nationality: Soviet (Russian)
Results: Analysed lunar gravitation and concentration of ionised particles; studied the solar wind, took photographs of the lunar surface
Photographs Taken: Unknown
Mission Ended: October 20 1972
Termination of Probe: Unknown; contact lost

Luna 20
Launched: February 14 1972
Reached Destination: February 18 1972
Type: Lander
Nationality: Soviet (Russian)
Results: Collected soil samples from lunar highlands
Photographs Taken: 0
Mission Ended: February 25 1972
Termination of Probe: Lander remains on the Moon, soil capsule returned to Earth.

Luna 21
Launched: January 8 1972
Reached Destination: January 15 1972
Type: Lander
Nationality: Soviet (Russian)
Results: Deposited Lunokhod 2 on lunar surface
Photographs Taken: 0 (but see Lunokhod 2)
Mission Ended: June 3 1971
Termination of Probe: Remains on the Moon still

Lunokhod 2
Launched: January 11 1973
Reached Destination: January 12 1973
Type: Rover
Nationality: Soviet (Russian)
Results: Photographs taken, soil samples analysed, calculations made as to the viability of astronomical observation from the Moon, solar rays observed, magnetic field analysed and so on.
Photographs Taken: 80,086
Mission Ended: May 11 1973
Termination of Probe: Still on lunar surface - was in fact sold to an American game designer, making it I think the first and only lunar rover passed from governmental control to private ownership.

Luna 22
Launched: May 29 1974
Reached Destination: June 2 1974
Type: Orbiter
Nationality: Soviet (Russian)
Results: Studied the Moon’s magnetic field, gamma ray emissions, the composition of rocks, gravitational field and cosmic rays, took photographs
Photographs Taken: Unknown
Mission Ended: November 1975
Termination of Probe: Likely crashed into the Moon.

Luna 23
Launched:October 28 1974
Reached Destination: November 2 1974
Type: Lander
Nationality: Soviet (Russian)
Results: None
Photographs Taken:
Mission Ended: November 9 1974
Termination of Probe: Fell over and stopped transmitting; still on the lunar surface

Luna 24
Launched: August 9 1976
Reached Destination: August 14 1976
Type: Lander
Nationality: Soviet (Russian)
Results: Returned soil sample
Photographs Taken: 0
Mission Ended: August 22 1976
Termination of Probe: Returned to Earth.

The second and last Soviet mission to the Moon to successfully return soil samples, these ones were significant in that trace elements of water, believed not to be on the Moon, were detected in them.

Lunokhod 3
Launched: Did not launch
Reached Destination: N/A
Type: Rover
Nationality: Soviet (Russian)
Results: n/a
Photographs Taken: 0
Mission Ended: n/a
Termination of Probe: Held in a Russian museum

Perhaps reflecting how interest in exploring the Moon had been all along based on a desire to beat the Americans there, and how, once they had managed to get there first, Russia’s government lost all heart for the venture, the third and final probe in the Lunokhod programme was never launched due to a lack of funding. Says it all really. This was in 1977, and so at this point the USA had established dominance over the space race, and no doubt the Russians were concentrating on more earthly matters.

10-11-2021, 12:11 PM	#24 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,971	Note: The next probe to attempt a landing on the Moon was another Russian one, fifteenth in the successful Luna programme, but by now NASA had achieved the ultimate goal and landed humans on the Moon, so the Soviets were really playing catch-up, and perhaps trying to ignore the fact that they had been beaten. Their first attempt, indeed a last-ditch one to try to pip the Americans to the post, was something of a disaster, and that's putting it mildly! Luna 15 Launched: July 13 1969 Reached Destination: July 17 1969 Type: Lander Nationality: Soviet (Russian) Results: None Photographs Taken: 0 Mission Ended: July 21 1969 Termination of Probe: Crashed into the Moon (unplanned) Still trying to outdo the Americans and refusing to accept that they had won the race to the Moon literally hours earlier, the Soviets tried landing Luna 15 on the Moon to sample the soil, but lost contact with the probe as it descended, and it’s believed it may have hit one of the lunar mountains. I doubt there could be a more public humiliation for the USSR during the space race. While Armstrong and Aldrin, their historic mission completed, were preparing to lift off from the Moon, the Russians were crashing their attempt into a rock. But they were nothing if not doggedly determined, and continued to send probes even as the Apollo programme gained traction and man walking on the Moon became almost a commonplace occurrence. Not really. Luna 16 Launched: September 12 1970 Reached Destination: September 15 1970 Type: Lander Nationality: Soviet (Russian) Results: Soil samples taken Photographs Taken: Unknown Mission Ended: September 24 1970 Termination of Probe: Lander remains on the Moon, sample capsule returned to Earth. Although the US Apollo mission beat them to it, this was the first time the Russians had managed to retrieve a soil sample from the Moon. After the probe landed, the soil sample was taken and put into the capsule, which a few days later took off again and headed for Earth. It was a very successful mission and a triumph for the USSR - just a pity the capitalists got there first, otherwise it might have made world headlines. Presumably it made Russian State Television news and the headline of Pravda... Luna 17 Launched: November 10 1970 Reached Destination: November 15 1970 Type: Lander Nationality: Soviet (Russian) Results: Landed Lunokhod 1, the world’s first lunar rover, on the Moon’s surface Photographs Taken: 0 Mission Ended: September 14 1971 Termination of Probe: Still on the Moon. Luna 17 was the vehicle which carried Lunkhead, sorry Lunokhod 1 to the Moon and made it the first ever lunar rover to be deployed on the surface of the Moon, so at least they had that over the Americans. Lunokhod’s story is told below. Lunokhod 1 Launched: November 10 1970 Reached Destination: November 17 1970 Type: Rover Nationality: Soviet (Russian) Results: Took thousands of pictures of the Moon from various vantage points, roamed across the surface taking soil samples. Photographs Taken: 20,206 Mission Ended: September 14 1971 Termination of Probe: Remains on lunar surface You’ve really got to feel for the Russians in one way. Only a few months before the hated Americans actually send men to walk on the surface of the Moon, making history, they’re still grappling with the logistics of getting a robotic rover there. I cam imagine the scene in February 1969 as they watch their rocket take off. “Hah! We will beat those decadent capitalists by getting our probe to the Moon and have it be the first to drive across the surface of a OH fuck! Look out comrade! That shit’s radioactive! Quick! Into this protective bunker! What? No, no time to warn the people! Fuck the people!” A few months later it’s all over. The Americans have definitively won the Race to the Moon. But the Russkies keep going, sending a rover that this time gets there and take pictures, but by now nobody really cares. America and the USSR are like two bands struggling for recognition and fame, one of which ends up playing Madison Square Gardens, the other is still playing Madison’s Wine Bar in Queens or something. The Russians have never come back from that massively humiliating defeat. After initial euphoria about Sputnik and their early successes, Russian space achievements seem to have completely tailed off, as if they’re just not interested any more, like a moody kid having lost the game kicking a can down the lane with his hands in his pockets muttering “Didn’t want to play that stupid game anyway” and desperately trying to convince himself that it doesn’t matter. Now Mars is the real target, but so far as I can see, Russia is not involved in those efforts (we’ll see in the next article) and space seems to more or less be in the hands of and under the control of the USA. As was once said in The Simpsons, the Moon belongs to America. The Russians, though, seem not to have got the memo... Luna 18 Launched: September 2 1971 Reached Destination: September 7 1971 Type: Lander Nationality: Soviet (Russian) Results: None Photographs Taken: 0 Mission Ended: September 11 1971 Termination of Probe: Crashed into the Moon’s surface. You would have to wonder how, this late in the game, the Soviets were still fucking it up. I guess we’ll see that the Apollo programme had its failures too, and nobody is saying the Americans’ attempts were flawless, but it seems almost like the roles have been reversed here. Initially, the Soviets got all the glory, got (nearly) everything right, reaped all the rewards, and the Americans were flailing in the dark, with launch after launched cancelled and mission after mission failing. But once the US got things sorted, everything - more or less - seems to have gone smoothly for them (with some notable exceptions) whereas the Russians almost seem to have regressed, suddenly having major problems, failed launches, crashed probes, exploding rockets… like NASA had mysteriously transferred their bad luck and poor planning to them. Of course, much of this had to do with funding not being available, training being below par and a general antipathy, one would assume, at the Kremlin in the wake of Apollo 11. They might have been thinking “we’ve been beaten, what’s the point in continuing to try?” and given less attention and care to their launches as maybe they should have. Either way, so far as I can see here, they never really recovered, and this was not a minor setback but almost a total defeat by and capitulation to the USA. Not that it stopped them trying, of course. Luna 19 Launched: September 28 1971 Reached Destination: October 2 1971 Type: Orbiter Nationality: Soviet (Russian) Results: Analysed lunar gravitation and concentration of ionised particles; studied the solar wind, took photographs of the lunar surface Photographs Taken: Unknown Mission Ended: October 20 1972 Termination of Probe: Unknown; contact lost Luna 20 Launched: February 14 1972 Reached Destination: February 18 1972 Type: Lander Nationality: Soviet (Russian) Results: Collected soil samples from lunar highlands Photographs Taken: 0 Mission Ended: February 25 1972 Termination of Probe: Lander remains on the Moon, soil capsule returned to Earth. Luna 21 Launched: January 8 1972 Reached Destination: January 15 1972 Type: Lander Nationality: Soviet (Russian) Results: Deposited Lunokhod 2 on lunar surface Photographs Taken: 0 (but see Lunokhod 2) Mission Ended: June 3 1971 Termination of Probe: Remains on the Moon still Lunokhod 2 Launched: January 11 1973 Reached Destination: January 12 1973 Type: Rover Nationality: Soviet (Russian) Results: Photographs taken, soil samples analysed, calculations made as to the viability of astronomical observation from the Moon, solar rays observed, magnetic field analysed and so on. Photographs Taken: 80,086 Mission Ended: May 11 1973 Termination of Probe: Still on lunar surface - was in fact sold to an American game designer, making it I think the first and only lunar rover passed from governmental control to private ownership. Luna 22 Launched: May 29 1974 Reached Destination: June 2 1974 Type: Orbiter Nationality: Soviet (Russian) Results: Studied the Moon’s magnetic field, gamma ray emissions, the composition of rocks, gravitational field and cosmic rays, took photographs Photographs Taken: Unknown Mission Ended: November 1975 Termination of Probe: Likely crashed into the Moon. *Luna 23* Launched:October 28 1974 Reached Destination: November 2 1974 Type: Lander Nationality: Soviet (Russian) Results: None Photographs Taken: Mission Ended: November 9 1974 Termination of Probe: Fell over and stopped transmitting; still on the lunar surface Luna 24 Launched: August 9 1976 Reached Destination: August 14 1976 Type: Lander Nationality: Soviet (Russian) Results: Returned soil sample Photographs Taken: 0 Mission Ended: August 22 1976 Termination of Probe: Returned to Earth. The second and last Soviet mission to the Moon to successfully return soil samples, these ones were significant in that trace elements of water, believed not to be on the Moon, were detected in them. Lunokhod 3 Launched: Did not launch Reached Destination: N/A Type: Rover Nationality: Soviet (Russian) Results: n/a Photographs Taken: 0 Mission Ended: n/a Termination of Probe: Held in a Russian museum Perhaps reflecting how interest in exploring the Moon had been all along based on a desire to beat the Americans there, and how, once they had managed to get there first, Russia’s government lost all heart for the venture, the third and final probe in the Lunokhod programme was never launched due to a lack of funding. Says it all really. This was in 1977, and so at this point the USA had established dominance over the space race, and no doubt the Russians were concentrating on more earthly matters. __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018