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Luna 20 was the second of three successful Soviet lunar sample return missions. It was flown as part of the Luna program as a robotic competitor to the six successful Apollo lunar sample return missions.
Luna 20
Luna 20 descent stage as seen from orbit by Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter in 2010
Luna 20 was placed in an intermediate Earth parking orbit and from this orbit was sent towards the Moon. It entered lunar orbit on 18 February 1972. On 21 February 1972, Luna 20 soft landed on the Moon in a mountainous area known as the Terra Apollonius (or Apollonius highlands) near Mare Fecunditatis (Sea of Fertility), 120 km from where Luna 16 had landed.
While on the lunar surface, the panoramic television system was operated. Lunar samples were obtained by means of an extendable drilling apparatus. The ascent stage of Luna 20 was launched from the lunar surface on 22 February 1972 carrying 1.9 ounces (55 grams) of collected lunar samples in a sealed capsule.[5] It landed in the Soviet Union on 25 February 1972. The lunar samples were recovered the following day.
Model of the Luna sample return lander with soil sample scoop - the ascent stage is the smaller cylinder with spherical Earth-return capsule on top.
This was the eighth Soviet spacecraft launched with the intent of returning lunar soil to Earth. It was evidently sent to complete the mission that Luna 18 had failed to accomplish. After a 4.5-day flight to the Moon, which included a single midcourse correction on 15 February, Luna 20 entered orbit around the Moon on 18 February. Initial orbital parameters were 100 x 100 kilometers at 65° inclination.
Three days later, at 19:13 UT, the spacecraft fired its main engine for 267 seconds to begin descent to the lunar surface. A second firing further reduced velocity before Luna 20 set down safely on the Moon at 19:19 UT on 21 February 1972 at coordinates 3.7863 North and 56.6242 East,[4] only 1.8 kilometers from the crash site of Luna 18.
After collecting a small sample of lunar soil, the spacecraft's ascent stage lifted off at 22:58 UT on 22 February and quickly accelerated to 2.7 kilometers per second velocity—sufficient to return to Earth. The small spherical capsule eventually parachuted down safely on an island in the Karkingir River, 40 kilometers north of the town of Jezkazgan in Kazakhstan, at 19:19 UT on 25 February 1972.
The 55-gram soil sample differed from that collected by Luna 16 in that the majority (50 to 60%) of the rock particles in the newer sample were ancient lunar highlands anorthosite (which consists largely of feldspar) rather than the basalt of the earlier one (which contained about 1 to 2% of anorthosite).[6] The American Apollo 16 mission returned similar highlands material two months later.
Like the Luna 16 soil, samples of the Luna 20 collection were shared with American and French scientists. A 0.4983g sample of material from a depth of 27and 32 cm was sent to Britain.[7]
^Siddiqi, Asif (2018). Beyond Earth: A Chronicle of Deep Space Exploration, 1958–2016(PDF) (second ed.). NASA History Program Office.
^Siddiqi, Asif (2018). Beyond Earth: A Chronicle of Deep Space Exploration, 1958–2016(PDF) (second ed.). NASA History Program Office.
^"Soviet and Russian Lunar Exploration" (PDF). p. 314.
^ ab"Table of Anthropogenic Impacts and Spacecraft on the Moon".
^. NASA Solar System Exploration. Archived from the original on 2022-11-05. Retrieved 2020-02-05.
^. NASA Solar System Exploration. 15 March 2018. Archived from the original on 2022-11-05. Retrieved 2020-02-05.
^Pillinger, Colin Trevor; Gowar, A.P (4 January 1977). "The separation and subdivision of two 0.5g samples of lunar soil collected by the Luna 16 and 20 missions". Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series A, Mathematical and Physical Sciences. 284 (1319): 137–143. Bibcode:1977RSPTA.284..137P. doi:10.1098/rsta.1977.0003. S2CID 119730403.
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This article relies largely or entirely on a single source Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page Please help improve this article by introducing citations to additional sources Find sources Luna 20 news newspapers books scholar JSTOR April 2015 Luna 20 was the second of three successful Soviet lunar sample return missions It was flown as part of the Luna program as a robotic competitor to the six successful Apollo lunar sample return missions Luna 20Luna 20 descent stage as seen from orbit by Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter in 2010Mission typeLunar sample returnCOSPAR ID1972 007ASATCAT no 5835Mission duration11 days day of launch to day of landing Spacecraft propertiesBusYe 8 5ManufacturerGSMZ LavochkinLaunch mass5 725 kilograms 12 621 lb 1 Dry mass5 600 kilograms 12 300 lb Start of missionLaunch date14 February 1972 03 27 58 1972 02 14UTC03 27 58Z UTC 2 RocketProton K DLaunch siteBaikonur 81 24End of missionLanding date25 February 1972 19 19 1972 02 25UTC19 20Z UTCLanding site47 24 N 68 36 E 47 400 N 68 600 E 47 400 68 600 3 40 km north of Dzhezkazgan KazakhstanOrbital parametersReference systemSelenocentricSemi major axis6 477 8 kilometres 4 025 1 mi Eccentricity0 0Periselene altitude100 kilometres 62 mi Aposelene altitude100 kilometres 62 mi Inclination65 degreesPeriod119 minutesLunar orbiterOrbits 36Lunar landerLanding date21 February 1972 19 19 UTCReturn launch22 February 1972 22 58 UTCLanding site3 47 11 N 56 37 27 E 3 7863 N 56 6242 E 3 7863 56 6242 4 Sample mass55 grams Luna 20 was placed in an intermediate Earth parking orbit and from this orbit was sent towards the Moon It entered lunar orbit on 18 February 1972 On 21 February 1972 Luna 20 soft landed on the Moon in a mountainous area known as the Terra Apollonius or Apollonius highlands near Mare Fecunditatis Sea of Fertility 120 km from where Luna 16 had landed While on the lunar surface the panoramic television system was operated Lunar samples were obtained by means of an extendable drilling apparatus The ascent stage of Luna 20 was launched from the lunar surface on 22 February 1972 carrying 1 9 ounces 55 grams of collected lunar samples in a sealed capsule 5 It landed in the Soviet Union on 25 February 1972 The lunar samples were recovered the following day Contents 1 Overview 2 See also 3 References 4 External linksOverview Edit nbsp Model of the Luna sample return lander with soil sample scoop the ascent stage is the smaller cylinder with spherical Earth return capsule on top This was the eighth Soviet spacecraft launched with the intent of returning lunar soil to Earth It was evidently sent to complete the mission that Luna 18 had failed to accomplish After a 4 5 day flight to the Moon which included a single midcourse correction on 15 February Luna 20 entered orbit around the Moon on 18 February Initial orbital parameters were 100 x 100 kilometers at 65 inclination Three days later at 19 13 UT the spacecraft fired its main engine for 267 seconds to begin descent to the lunar surface A second firing further reduced velocity before Luna 20 set down safely on the Moon at 19 19 UT on 21 February 1972 at coordinates 3 7863 North and 56 6242 East 4 only 1 8 kilometers from the crash site of Luna 18 After collecting a small sample of lunar soil the spacecraft s ascent stage lifted off at 22 58 UT on 22 February and quickly accelerated to 2 7 kilometers per second velocity sufficient to return to Earth The small spherical capsule eventually parachuted down safely on an island in the Karkingir River 40 kilometers north of the town of Jezkazgan in Kazakhstan at 19 19 UT on 25 February 1972 The 55 gram soil sample differed from that collected by Luna 16 in that the majority 50 to 60 of the rock particles in the newer sample were ancient lunar highlands anorthosite which consists largely of feldspar rather than the basalt of the earlier one which contained about 1 to 2 of anorthosite 6 The American Apollo 16 mission returned similar highlands material two months later Like the Luna 16 soil samples of the Luna 20 collection were shared with American and French scientists A 0 4983g sample of material from a depth of 27and 32 cm was sent to Britain 7 Lunar Mission Sample Returned YearLuna 16 101 g 8 1970Luna 20 30 g 8 1972Luna 24 170 1 g 8 1976In March 2010 NASA reported that its Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter satellite had spotted Luna 20 on the lunar surface 9 10 See also Edit nbsp Spaceflight portalTimeline of artificial satellites and space probes List of artificial objects on the Moon descent stage References Edit Siddiqi Asif 2018 Beyond Earth A Chronicle of Deep Space Exploration 1958 2016 PDF second ed NASA History Program Office Siddiqi Asif 2018 Beyond Earth A Chronicle of Deep Space Exploration 1958 2016 PDF second ed NASA History Program Office Soviet and Russian Lunar Exploration PDF p 314 a b Table of Anthropogenic Impacts and Spacecraft on the Moon In Depth Luna 20 NASA Solar System Exploration Archived from the original on 2022 11 05 Retrieved 2020 02 05 In Depth Luna 20 NASA Solar System Exploration 15 March 2018 Archived from the original on 2022 11 05 Retrieved 2020 02 05 Pillinger Colin Trevor Gowar A P 4 January 1977 The separation and subdivision of two 0 5g samples of lunar soil collected by the Luna 16 and 20 missions Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London Series A Mathematical and Physical Sciences 284 1319 137 143 Bibcode 1977RSPTA 284 137P doi 10 1098 rsta 1977 0003 S2CID 119730403 a b c NASA NSSDC Spacecraft Details nssdc gsfc nasa gov Retrieved 2015 11 08 David Leonard 18 March 2010 NASA Lunar Orbiter Spots Old Soviet Moon Landers Luna 20 surface photos Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera Retrieved 2022 11 30 External links EditZarya Luna program chronology NASA NSSDC Master Catalog Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Luna 20 amp oldid 1154509391, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
