 Luna 16 | |
| Mission type | Lunar sample return |
|---|---|
| Operator | Soviet space program |
| COSPAR ID | 1970-072A |
| SATCAT no. | 4527 |
| Mission duration | 12 days |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Bus | Ye-8-5 |
| Manufacturer | GSMZ Lavochkin |
| Launch mass | 5,725 kg (12,621 lb)[1] |
| Landing mass | 1,880 kg (4,140 lb) [2] |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 12 September 1970, 13:25:52 UTC[1] |
| Rocket | Proton-K/D |
| Launch site | Baikonur 81/23 |
| End of mission | |
| Landing date | 24 September 1970, 05:25 UTC |
| Landing site | 47°24′N 68°36′E / 47.400°N 68.600°E[3] |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Selenocentric |
| Semi-major axis | 6,488.8 km (4,032.0 mi) |
| Eccentricity | 0 |
| Periselene altitude | 111 km (69 mi) |
| Aposelene altitude | 111 km (69 mi) |
| Inclination | 70° |
| Period | 119 minutes |
| Epoch | 18 September 1970 |
| Lunar orbiter | |
| Orbital insertion | 17 September 1970 |
| Orbits | ~36 |
| Lunar lander | |
| Landing date | 20 September 1970, 05:18 UTC |
| Return launch | 21 September 1970, 07:43 UTC |
| Landing site | 0°30′49″S 56°21′50″E / 0.5137°S 56.3638°E |
| Sample mass | 101 grams (3.6 oz) |
| Instruments | |
| Stereo photographic imaging system Remote arm for sample collection Radiation detector | |
Luna 16 was an uncrewed 1970 space mission, part of the Soviet Luna program. It was the first robotic probe to land on the Moon and return a sample of lunar soil to Earth.[4][5] The 101 grams (3.56 ounces) sample was returned from Mare Fecunditatis. It represented the first successful lunar sample return mission by the Soviet Union and was the third lunar sample return mission overall.
- ^ a b Siddiqi, Asif (2018). Beyond Earth: A Chronicle of Deep Space Exploration, 1958–2016 (PDF) (second ed.). NASA History Program Office. ISBN 9781626830431.
- ^ Solar System Log by Andrew Wilson (pp.60–63), Jane's Publishing Company Limited, 1987, ISBN 0 7106 0444 0
- ^ "Soviet and Russian Lunar Exploration" (PDF). p. 314. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2019-07-29.
- ^ Burrows, William E. (1999). This New Ocean: The Story of the First Space Age. Modern Library. p. 432. ISBN 0-375-75485-7.
- ^ Siddiqi, Asif A. (2018). Beyond Earth: A Chronicle of Deep Space Exploration, 1958–2016 (PDF). The NASA history series (second ed.). Washington, DC: NASA History Program Office. p. 1. ISBN 9781626830424. LCCN 2017059404. SP2018-4041.