When did Lunokhod 1 land on the Moon?
Lunokhod 1 landed in the Sea of Rains on the 17th of November 1970, at 03:47 UTC, after launching aboard the Luna 17 spacecraft on the 10th of November 1970.
Questions about Lunokhod programme
Short answers, pulled from the story.
Who bought Lunokhod 2 and why is that significant?
Computer gaming entrepreneur Richard Garriott, also known as Lord British, bought ownership of Lunokhod 2 and the Luna 21 lander at a Sotheby's auction in New York in December 1993. He has said the purchase made him the only private owner of an object on another celestial body.
How far did Lunokhod 2 travel across the Moon?
Lunokhod 2 covered 42 km of lunar terrain over about four months of operation. That distance held the record for the longest surface travel by any extraterrestrial vehicle until 2014.
Why was the first Lunokhod rover lost in 1969?
The first Lunokhod, launched on the 19th of February 1969, was destroyed when its rocket disintegrated within seconds of liftoff. The failure scattered its radioactive polonium-210 heat source across a region of Russia.
What was the Lunokhod programme originally designed to do?
The Lunokhod rovers were originally designed as a backup safety system for the Soviet Union's crewed L3 Moon missions. Uncrewed rovers were meant to scout landing sites ahead of cosmonauts and act as radio beacons for precision landings.
How is the Lunokhod design connected to the Chernobyl disaster?
After the Chernobyl nuclear disaster on the 26th of April 1986, Lunokhod's original designers built radiation-hardened rovers called STR-1. The rovers used the same nuclear heat sources and hardened electronics to help clear debris from the damaged reactor building.