Luna 8
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| Organization: | Soviet Union |
| Major Contractors: | OKB-1 |
| Mission Type: | Planetary Science Lunar landing |
| Satellite of: | Moon |
| Launch: | December 3, 1965 at 10:48:00 UTC |
| Launch Vehicle: | Molniya 8K78 (4-Stage R-7 / SS-6) |
| Mission Highlight: | Lunar impact on December 6, 1965, 21:51:30 UTC 9.6° N - 62° W. |
| Mission Duration: | 3-days |
| Mass: | 1,550 kg |
| NSSDC ID: | 1965-099A |
| Webpage: | NASA NSSDC Master Catalog |
| Orbital elements | |
|---|---|
| Semimajor Axis: | n/a |
| Eccentricity: | n/a |
| Inclination: | n/a |
| Orbital Period: | n/a |
| Aposelene: | n/a |
| Periselene: | n/a |
| Orbits: | Lunar impact |
| Instruments | |
| Close-Up Lunar Surface Photography : | Lunar photography |
Luna 8 (E-6 series) was an unmanned space mission of the Luna program, also called Lunik 8. Luna 8 was launched with the probable mission of achieving a soft landing on the Moon. However, the retrofire was late, and the spacecraft impacted the lunar surface in Oceanus Procellarum. The mission did complete the experimental development of the star-orientation system and ground control of radio equipment, flight trajectory, and other instrumentation.
This, the eleventh Soviet attempt to achieve a lunar soft-landing, nearly succeeded. After a successful midcourse correction on 4 December, the spacecraft headed toward the Moon without any apparent problems. Just prior to the planned retro-fire burn, a command was sent to inflate cushioning airbags around the ALS lander probe. Unfortunately, a plastic mounting bracket apparently pierced one of the two bags. The resulting expulsion of air put the spacecraft into a spin of 12 degrees per second. The vehicle momentarily regained attitude, long enough for a 9-second retro-engine firing, but then lost it again. Without a full retro-fire burn to reduce approach velocity sufficient for a survivable landing, Luna 8 plummeted to the lunar surface and crashed at 21:51:30 UT on 6 December just west of the Kepler crater. Impact coordinates were 9°8' north latitude and 63°18' west longitude.
- Launch Date/Time: 1965-12-03 at 10:48:00 UTC
- On-orbit dry mass: 1550 kg
| Preceded by: Luna 7 |
Luna programme | Succeeded by: Luna 9 |
| Luna programme |
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