Russia has sent its first exploratory mission to the moon in almost 50 years to detect the presence of water.
According to the news agency AFP, this is Russia’s first mission to send Luna 25 to the moon since 1976.
It should be note that the Soviet Union was the first country to enter the space world. After which other countries launched their missions.
Luna 25 was launch into space at 2:10 a.m. local time on Friday. With live footage from the Russian space agency Roscosmos.
The spacecraft will enter lunar orbit in five days. After which it will land at the South Pole in three or seven days, determining the exact location.
Alexander Blokhin, the head of Ras Kosmos, said in a recent interview that for the first time in history. A mission is going to land at the south pole of the moon; until now. Every mission has landed at the equator.
A space agency official told AFP that the probe mission will land on the lunar surface around August 21.
The Russian space agency says the mission will stay on the moon for a year. And collect samples, examine the soil, and conduct long-term research.
This is the first mission of Russia’s moon programme, which was launch at a time when the Russian space agency had lost the partnership of Western countries due to differences over Ukraine.
Russian cosmologist Vitaly Igorov says that after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia has tried to send a mission into space for the first time.
Vitaly Igorov called this mission very important for Russia. And said, “The big question is, will it be able to land on the surface of the moon?”
Russian President Vladimir Putin has expressed his determination to continue the space programme despite the sanctions.
At one point last year, President Putin said that when the Soviet Union sent the first man into space in 1961. The situation between East and West was very tense at the time.
“We are guided by the ambition of our forefathers to move forward, despite all the odds and external efforts. That try to stop us from doing so,” he said.
