Luna 07
| Launch Date | Oct. 4, 1965 | 07:56:40 UT |
| Launch Site | Tyuratam (Baikonur Cosmodrome), USSR, NIIP-5 / launch site 1 |
| Destination | Earth's Moon |
| Type | Lander |
| Status | Unsuccessful |
| Nation | Soviet Union |
| Alternate Names | Ye-6 (no. 11), Yunik 7, 01610, automatic interplanetary station |
Goals
The Soviet Union intended Luna 7 to land softly on the lunar surface
Accomplishments
None. The spacecraft crashed into the Moon due to loss of attitude control
Key Dates
Oct. 4, 1965 | 07:56:40 UT: Launch
Oct. 5, 1965: Midcourse correction
Oct. 7, 1965 | 22:08:24 UT: Collided with Moon’s surfac
In Depth
Unlike its predecessors, Luna 7 successfully carried out its midcourse correction on the way to the Moon, in anticipation of a soft landing two days later. But during final approach to the lunar surface, the spacecraft suddenly lost attitude control and failed to regain it. Automatic programmed systems then prevented the main engine from firing.
As controllers observed helplessly, Luna 7 plummeted at a very high speed and collided with the lunar surface on Oct. 7 at 9.8 degrees north, 47.8 degrees west, in the Sea of Storms region of the Moon, not far from its intended landing site.
Later investigation indicated that the optical sensor of the astronavigation system had been set at the wrong angle and had lost sight of Earth during the critical attitude-control maneuver. It was the tenth consecutive failure in the Soviet Ye-6 program.
Spacecraft
Launch Vehicle: Modified SS-6 (Sapwood) with 2nd Generation Upper Stage + Escape Stage, 8K78 (no. U103-27)
Spacecraft Mass: 3,320 pounds (1,506 kilograms)
Spacecraft Instruments
-
Imaging system
-
Radiation detector
Additional Resources
National Space Science Data Center Master Catalogue: Luna 7
National Space Science Data Center: Soviet Lunar Missions
Selected References
Siddiqi, Asif A. Deep Space Chronicle: A Chronology of Deep Space and Planetary Probes 1958-2000, NASA, 2002.
