Luna 24 was a robotic probe of the Soviet Union's Luna programme. The 24th mission of the Luna series of spacecraft, the mission of the Luna 24 probe was the third Soviet mission to return lunar soil samples from the Moon (the first two sample return missions were Luna 16 and Luna 20). The probe landed in Mare Crisium (Sea of Crises). The mission returned 170.1 g (6.00 oz) of lunar samples to the Earth on 22 August 1976.
Luna 24
Luna 24 landed on the northwestern rim of a 64 m diameter impact crater Lev, on the volcanic plains of Mare Crisium
Luna 24 was based on the Ye-8-5 spacecraft body, consisting of two attached stages, an ascent stage mounted on top of a descent stage. The lander stood 3.96 meters tall and had an unfueled landed mass of 1880 kg. With a full load of fuel its launch mass was between 5600 and 5750 kg.[5]
The descent stage was the same as the Ye-8 lower stage for the Lunokhod rovers, a cylindrical body with four protruding landing legs, fuel tanks, a landing radar altimeter, and a dual descent engine complex. The main descent rocket, the KTDU-417, was a throttleable 1920 kg thrust engine used for mid-course corrections, orbit insertion, braking for descent to the surface, and to slow the craft until it reached a cutoff point which was determined by the onboard computer based on altitude and velocity. After cutoff a bank of lower thrust (210 and 350 kg) vernier jets was used for the final landing. The descent stage also acted as a launch pad for the ascent stage. The spacecraft descent stage was equipped with a television camera, radiation and temperature monitors, telecommunications equipment, and a 90 cm extendable arm with a drilling rig for the collection of a lunar soil sample. Communications were via a conical antenna at the end of a boom at 768 and 922 MHz (downlink) and 115 MHz (uplink).[5]
The ascent stage was a smaller cylinder with a spherical top which replaced the Lunokhod rover and housing from the Ye-8 bus. It carried a cylindrical hermetically sealed soil sample container inside a spherical re-entry capsule, mounted on a 1920 kg thrust KRD-61 rocket. Total mass of the ascent stage was 520 kg, of which 245 kg was the nitric acid and UDMH propellant. It was 2 meters tall. The sample return cabin was 50 cm in diameter and had a mass of 39 kg. The KRD-61 could only fire once, for 53 seconds, to put it on a free return trajectory to Earth. Specific impulse of the engine was 313 seconds, it could impart a velocity of 2600-2700 m/s to the return craft.[5]
Luna 24 was the third attempt to recover a sample from the unexplored Mare Crisium, the location of a large lunar mascon (after Luna 23 and a launch failure in October 1975). After a trajectory correction on 11 August 1976, Luna 24 entered lunar orbit three days later. Initial orbital parameters were 115 by 115 km (71 by 71 mi) at 120° inclination. After further changes to its orbit, Luna 24 set down safely on the lunar surface at 06:36 UTC on 18 August 1976 at 12°45' North latitude and 62°12' East longitude, not far from where Luna 23 had landed.[8] Exact landing location (12.7145° N, 62.2097° E) was determined by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter probe orbital cameras in 2012.[9]
Under command from ground control, the lander deployed its sample arm and pushed its drilling head about two metres into the nearby soil. The sample was safely stowed in the small return capsule, and after nearly a day on the Moon, Luna 24 lifted off successfully at 05:25 UTC on 19 August 1976. After an uneventful return trip, Luna 24's capsule entered Earth's atmosphere and parachuted safely to land at 05:55 UTC on 22 August 1976, about 200 km (120 mi) southeast of Surgut in western Siberia. Study of the recovered 170.1 g (6.00 oz) of soil indicated a laminated type structure, as if laid down in successive deposits. The Soviet Union swapped a gram of the mission sample for a lunar sample from NASA in December 1976.[8]Luna 24 was the final lunar spacecraft to be launched by the Soviet Union. It was also the last spacecraft to make a soft landing on the Moon until the landing of China's Chang'e 3 on 14 December 2013, 37 years later. For over 44 years, it was also the last Lunar sample return mission until China's Chang'e 5 in December 2020.
In February 1978, Soviet scientists M. Akhmanova, B. Dement'ev, and M. Markov of the Vernadsky Institute of Geochemistry and Analytic Chemistry published a paper claiming a detection of water fairly definitively.[10][11] Their study showed that the samples returned to Earth by the probe contained about 0.1% water by mass, as seen in infrared absorption spectroscopy (at about 3 µm wavelength), at a detection level about 10 times above the threshold.[12]
^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. (PDF) from the original on 29 July 2019.
^Samuel Lawrence (24 September 2013). "LROC Coordinates of Robotic Spacecraft - 2013 Update". lroc.sese.asu.edu. from the original on 9 May 2015. Retrieved 9 June 2015.
^ abcd"Display: Luna 24 1976-081A". NASA. 10 February 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2021. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
^"Display: Luna 16 1970-072A". NASA. 10 February 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2021. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
^"Display: Luna 20 1972-007A". NASA. 10 February 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2021. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
^ abSolar System Exploration: USSR: Luna 24 30 April 2015 at the Wayback Machine solarsystem.nasa.gov NASA Retrieved: 16 November 2016 This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
^Plescia, Jeff (16 March 2012). "Mare Crisium: Failure then Success". LROC News System. from the original on 8 December 2013. Retrieved 2 December 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
^Akhmanova, M.; Dement'ev, B.; Markov, M. (February 1978). "Water in the regolith of Mare Crisium (Luna-24)?". Geokhimiya (in Russian) (285).
^Akhmanova, M.; Dement'ev, B.; Markov, M. (1978). "Possible Water in Luna 24 Regolith from the Sea of Crises". Geochemistry International. 15 (166).
^Crotts, Arlin (2012). "Water on The Moon, I. Historical Overview". arXiv:1205.5597v1 [astro-ph.EP].
External linksEdit
Media related to Luna 24 at Wikimedia Commons
Zarya - Luna 24 chronology
NASA NSSDC Master Catalog
"Soviet Moon Lander Discovered Water on The Moon in 1976". The Physics arXiv Blog. Technology Review. 30 May 2012.
Mare Crisium: Failure then Success, article showing LROC images of Luna 23 and Luna 24 on the lunar surface
October 20, 2023
luna, robotic, probe, soviet, union, luna, programme, 24th, mission, luna, series, spacecraft, mission, probe, third, soviet, mission, return, lunar, soil, samples, from, moon, first, sample, return, missions, were, luna, luna, probe, landed, mare, crisium, cr. Luna 24 was a robotic probe of the Soviet Union s Luna programme The 24th mission of the Luna series of spacecraft the mission of the Luna 24 probe was the third Soviet mission to return lunar soil samples from the Moon the first two sample return missions were Luna 16 and Luna 20 The probe landed in Mare Crisium Sea of Crises The mission returned 170 1 g 6 00 oz of lunar samples to the Earth on 22 August 1976 Luna 24Luna 24 landed on the northwestern rim of a 64 m diameter impact crater Lev on the volcanic plains of Mare CrisiumMission typeLunar sample returnOperatorOKB 1COSPAR ID1976 081ASATCAT no 09272Mission duration13 days achieved Spacecraft propertiesSpacecraft typeLunaBusYe 8 5ManufacturerNPO LavochkinLaunch mass5 800 kg 12 800 lb 1 Start of missionLaunch date9 August 1976 15 04 12 UTC 2 RocketProton K Blok DM s n 288 02 Launch siteBaikonur Site 81 23ContractorKrunichevEnd of missionLanding date22 August 1976 17 55 UTCLanding site61 3 36 N 75 54 0 E 61 06000 N 75 90000 E 61 06000 75 90000 3 200 km 120 mi South East of Surgut Western SiberiaOrbital parametersReference systemSelenocentric orbitRegimeCircular orbitPeriselene altitude115 km 71 mi Aposelene altitude115 km 71 mi Inclination120 0 Period1 hour 59 minutesLunar orbiterOrbital insertion14 August 1976Orbits 48Lunar landerLanding date18 August 1976 06 36 UTCReturn launch19 August 1976 05 25 UTCLanding site12 42 52 N 62 12 35 E 12 7145 N 62 2097 E 12 7145 62 2097 4 Sample mass170 1 g 6 00 oz InstrumentsStereo photographic imaging systemImproved drill Remote arm for sample collectionRadiation detectorRadio altimeterLuna programme Luna E 8 5M No 412Luna 25 Contents 1 Spacecraft 2 Mission 3 Detection of water in returned samples 4 See also 5 References 6 External linksSpacecraft Edit nbsp Model of Luna 24 Moon landerLuna 24 was based on the Ye 8 5 spacecraft body consisting of two attached stages an ascent stage mounted on top of a descent stage The lander stood 3 96 meters tall and had an unfueled landed mass of 1880 kg With a full load of fuel its launch mass was between 5600 and 5750 kg 5 The descent stage was the same as the Ye 8 lower stage for the Lunokhod rovers a cylindrical body with four protruding landing legs fuel tanks a landing radar altimeter and a dual descent engine complex The main descent rocket the KTDU 417 was a throttleable 1920 kg thrust engine used for mid course corrections orbit insertion braking for descent to the surface and to slow the craft until it reached a cutoff point which was determined by the onboard computer based on altitude and velocity After cutoff a bank of lower thrust 210 and 350 kg vernier jets was used for the final landing The descent stage also acted as a launch pad for the ascent stage The spacecraft descent stage was equipped with a television camera radiation and temperature monitors telecommunications equipment and a 90 cm extendable arm with a drilling rig for the collection of a lunar soil sample Communications were via a conical antenna at the end of a boom at 768 and 922 MHz downlink and 115 MHz uplink 5 The ascent stage was a smaller cylinder with a spherical top which replaced the Lunokhod rover and housing from the Ye 8 bus It carried a cylindrical hermetically sealed soil sample container inside a spherical re entry capsule mounted on a 1920 kg thrust KRD 61 rocket Total mass of the ascent stage was 520 kg of which 245 kg was the nitric acid and UDMH propellant It was 2 meters tall The sample return cabin was 50 cm in diameter and had a mass of 39 kg The KRD 61 could only fire once for 53 seconds to put it on a free return trajectory to Earth Specific impulse of the engine was 313 seconds it could impart a velocity of 2600 2700 m s to the return craft 5 Mission EditLunarmission Samplereturned YearLuna 16 101 g 6 1970Luna 20 30 g 7 1972Luna 24 170 1 g 5 1976Luna 24 was the third attempt to recover a sample from the unexplored Mare Crisium the location of a large lunar mascon after Luna 23 and a launch failure in October 1975 After a trajectory correction on 11 August 1976 Luna 24 entered lunar orbit three days later Initial orbital parameters were 115 by 115 km 71 by 71 mi at 120 inclination After further changes to its orbit Luna 24 set down safely on the lunar surface at 06 36 UTC on 18 August 1976 at 12 45 North latitude and 62 12 East longitude not far from where Luna 23 had landed 8 Exact landing location 12 7145 N 62 2097 E was determined by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter probe orbital cameras in 2012 9 Under command from ground control the lander deployed its sample arm and pushed its drilling head about two metres into the nearby soil The sample was safely stowed in the small return capsule and after nearly a day on the Moon Luna 24 lifted off successfully at 05 25 UTC on 19 August 1976 After an uneventful return trip Luna 24 s capsule entered Earth s atmosphere and parachuted safely to land at 05 55 UTC on 22 August 1976 about 200 km 120 mi southeast of Surgut in western Siberia Study of the recovered 170 1 g 6 00 oz of soil indicated a laminated type structure as if laid down in successive deposits The Soviet Union swapped a gram of the mission sample for a lunar sample from NASA in December 1976 8 Luna 24 was the final lunar spacecraft to be launched by the Soviet Union It was also the last spacecraft to make a soft landing on the Moon until the landing of China s Chang e 3 on 14 December 2013 37 years later For over 44 years it was also the last Lunar sample return mission until China s Chang e 5 in December 2020 Detection of water in returned samples EditSee also Lunar water In February 1978 Soviet scientists M Akhmanova B Dement ev and M Markov of the Vernadsky Institute of Geochemistry and Analytic Chemistry published a paper claiming a detection of water fairly definitively 10 11 Their study showed that the samples returned to Earth by the probe contained about 0 1 water by mass as seen in infrared absorption spectroscopy at about 3 µm wavelength at a detection level about 10 times above the threshold 12 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 Archived PDF from the original on 29 July 2019 Samuel Lawrence 24 September 2013 LROC Coordinates of Robotic Spacecraft 2013 Update lroc sese asu edu Archived from the original on 9 May 2015 Retrieved 9 June 2015 a b c d Display Luna 24 1976 081A NASA 10 February 2021 Retrieved 17 February 2021 nbsp This article incorporates text from this source which is in the public domain Display Luna 16 1970 072A NASA 10 February 2021 Retrieved 17 February 2021 nbsp This article incorporates text from this source which is in the public domain Display Luna 20 1972 007A NASA 10 February 2021 Retrieved 17 February 2021 nbsp This article incorporates text from this source which is in the public domain a b Solar System Exploration USSR Luna 24 Archived 30 April 2015 at the Wayback Machine solarsystem nasa gov NASA Retrieved 16 November 2016 nbsp This article incorporates text from this source which is in the public domain Plescia Jeff 16 March 2012 Mare Crisium Failure then Success LROC News System Archived from the original on 8 December 2013 Retrieved 2 December 2020 nbsp This article incorporates text from this source which is in the public domain Akhmanova M Dement ev B Markov M February 1978 Water in the regolith of Mare Crisium Luna 24 Geokhimiya in Russian 285 Akhmanova M Dement ev B Markov M 1978 Possible Water in Luna 24 Regolith from the Sea of Crises Geochemistry International 15 166 Crotts Arlin 2012 Water on The Moon I Historical Overview arXiv 1205 5597v1 astro ph EP External links Edit nbsp Media related to Luna 24 at Wikimedia Commons Zarya Luna 24 chronology NASA NSSDC Master Catalog Soviet Moon Lander Discovered Water on The Moon in 1976 The Physics arXiv Blog Technology Review 30 May 2012 Mare Crisium Failure then Success article showing LROC images of Luna 23 and Luna 24 on the lunar surface Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Luna 24 amp oldid 1180262860, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
