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Russia's Luna-25 Spacecraft Enters Moon's Orbit, Space Agency Says


FILE - The lunar landing spacecraft Luna-25 blasts off from a launchpad at the Vostochny Cosmodrome in the far eastern Amur region, Russia, Aug. 11, 2023. (Roscosmos/Vostochny Space Centre/Handout via Reuters)
FILE - The lunar landing spacecraft Luna-25 blasts off from a launchpad at the Vostochny Cosmodrome in the far eastern Amur region, Russia, Aug. 11, 2023. (Roscosmos/Vostochny Space Centre/Handout via Reuters)

Russia's lunar spacecraft entered the moon's orbit on Wednesday, a major step toward the country's ambition of being the first to land on the moon's south pole in the search for frozen water.

The Luna-25 entered the moon's orbit at 11:57 a.m. local time (0857 GMT), Russia's space corporate Roskosmos said.

Luna-25 will circle the moon, the Earth's only natural satellite, for about five days, then change course for a soft landing on the lunar south pole planned for August 21.

India's Chandrayaan-3 entered the moon's orbit earlier this month ahead of a planned touchdown on the south pole of the moon later this month.

The Luna-25, which is roughly the size of a small car, will aim to operate for a year on the south pole, where scientists at NASA and other space agencies in recent years have detected traces of frozen water in the craters.

The presence of water on the moon has implications for major space powers, potentially allowing longer human sojourns on the planet that would enable the mining of lunar resources.

No Russian spacecraft has entered lunar orbit since Luna-24, the Soviet Union's 1976 moon mission, according to Anatoly Zak, the creator and publisher of www.RussianSpaceWeb.com which tracks Russian space programs.

"Entering lunar orbit is absolutely critical for the success of this project," Zak told Reuters. "This is a first for the post-Soviet period."

"Some are calling this the second lunar race so it is very important for Russia to resume this program. Luna-25 is not just one mission — it is part of a much broader Russian strategy that stretches 10 years into the future."

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    Reuters

    Reuters is a news agency founded in 1851 and owned by the Thomson Reuters Corporation based in Toronto, Canada. One of the world's largest wire services, it provides financial news as well as international coverage in over 16 languages to more than 1000 newspapers and 750 broadcasters around the globe.

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