fbpx

03.02.

1966: The First Soft Landing on an Extraterrestrial Body was Performed by the USSR

1966: The First Soft Landing on an Extraterrestrial Body was Performed by the USSR
Photo Credit To http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/9709/luna_9_unk_big.jpg

The photos which Luna 9 took on the Lunar surface were sent to Earth through a radio transmitter. These were the first photos from the surface of an extraterrestrial body that people could touch and see.



 

The first soft landing on an extraterrestrial body in the history of humankind was performed on this day in 1966 – the Soviet probe Luna 9 landed on the Moon. The probe had been launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome, which is currently located on the territory of Kazakhstan. Luna 9 required around three days to reach the vicinity of the Moon, after which it started its landing procedure. Namely, the spacecraft’s rotation was stopped at a height of around 8,300 km, and it assumed a proper position for landing. In order to decelerate, the the probe’s retrorockets were engaged at an altitude of 25 km. The procedure used data obtained from a radar altimeter. The probe’s final speed as it landed on the Lunar surface was 22 km/h. The photos which Luna 9 took on the Lunar surface were sent to Earth through a radio transmitter. These were the first photos from the surface of an extraterrestrial body that people could touch and see.

Facebook Comments Box






Related posts