PRESENT
FEBRUARY 3, 1966.
THE MOON. OCEAN OF STORMS
A spacecraft was approaching
the Moon on 2.5 km/sec.
Vertical orientation.
ETA 5 hours. Altitude
75,000 m. Braking started.
Close to the Moon surface,
one of its modules detached
itself, becoming  a huge ball.
For the first time in history
an automatic interplanetary
station had landed on the Moon.
4 minutes later, the
petal-shaped aerials opened,
turning the ball into
a fantastic flower.
The Moon 9 Soviet station
established contact with the Earth.
Ready!
Roger.
Prefire purge.
Ignition.
Have a safe flight.
Open Space
Episode 3
April 23, 1967, Soyuz 1 spaceship
with astronaut Vladimir Komarov on board
was completing its second circuit.
Ruby, I’m Dawn 10.
Report on your condition.
My condition is good. The
cabin’s parameters are normal.
“However, the left solar
battery didn’t open.
The charging current is barely 13-14 A.
HF communications don’t work.
The attempt to spin the ship
toward the Sun didn’t work.
Try to direct the ship
towards the Sun on DO1.
Save energy and fuel.”
Far away in the outer space
Vladimir Komarov tried to
save his ship all by himself.
The ship which was planned for
the first flight to the Moon.
The Moon.
In the daytime, its surface
heats up to 120 degrees Celsius,
and at nights freezes down to minus 160.
The sky here is always
black, even in the daytime.
The Earth looks approximately
4 times bigger from the Moon
than the Moon does from the Earth.
The Moon gravity is around 6
times smaller than the Earth’s.
The so-called lunar seas and
oceans are in fact vast valleys
which had been full of
basaltic lava one day.
According to the astronomic terminology,
the Moon isn’t a planet since
it is the Earth’s satellite.
Most lunar craters were formed
as a result of the falling
meteorites, comets, and asteroids.
The names were given to lunar
objects in the 17th century
after a system proposed
by Italian astronomer
Giovanni Riccioli.
For instance, the dark spots
were given the romantic
names Ocean of Storms,
Sea of Serenity, Sea of
Tranquility, Sea of Crises,
Sea of Rains.
Mountains were named
after terrestrial ones:
the Alps, Caucasus, Altai, Carpathians.
The biggest craters were
named after famous astronomers:
Aristarchus, Anaxagoras,
Kopernik, Kepler.
Until recently it was
believed that the Moon does not
and cannot have fresh water supplies.
However, near its south pole,
at the bottoms of shadowy craters,
where temperature is
close to absolute zero,
at least 600 million
tons of water were found
in the form of ice blocks.
They probably are a
result of a falling comet.
Even before Gagarin
and Titov went to space,
Sergey Koroliov had been making
plans to conquer the Moon.
Earth’s natural satellite
was to become the first celestial
body where man would land.
To launch an artificial satellite,
it was necessary for it to reach
radial velocity — 7.9 km/sec.
To send it into interplanetary travel,
it needs escape velocity — 11.2 km/sec.
So, to deliver a spaceship to the Moon,
a more powerful missile was needed
than the one sending satellites
or astronauts to the orbit.
Sending their first
spacecraft to the Moon,
Korolyov’s designers simply
added one more stage to R7.
Having reached the orbit,
it would start its engines
and speed up the spacecraft
to escape velocity.
September 14, 1959,
the Soviet Luna 2 interplanetary
station landed on the Moon.
It had no soft landing system,
and the first interplanetary spacecraft
simply crashed into the ground.
The interplanetary flights had begun.
Korolyov planned to amaze
the world one more time,
showing it something
that was impossible to see
without a space flight:
the far side of the Moon.
The Moon rotates on its axis
but is always turned to
the Earth with one side.
The reason is that its
movement around the Earth
and its own rotation have been
synchronized in billions of years.
It is common knowledge that the Moon
causes ocean tides on the Earth.
But the Earth also has
tidal influence on the Moon.
Since there’s no water on the Moon,
the Earth affects its crust,
gradually slowing down its rotation.
For centuries the far side of
the Moon remained a mystery.
Bold hypotheses were
suggested regarding it.
Some thought that there was
a giant depression on it,
that it was inhabited by Selenites
or occupied by alien bases.
Astronomers always dreamed
about seeing the far side,
but the only way to do it
was flying around the Moon
in a spaceship.
Korolyov’s Luna 3 was a proper
photo and television complex.
It would photograph the far
side of the Moon, develop film
and broadcast it to the
Earth through a TV camera.
The USSR did not produce
film of required quality.
So, the designers used the trophies.
American probes with photo cameras
often crossed the USSR border.
Soviet anti-aircraft defense
would bring them down,
and the captured film
would be sent to Korolyov.
In the area of Mount Koshka,
where the interim ground
station was deployed,
traffic was blocked
and devices, creating radio
interference, turned off.
We have a stable signal.
What do you have?
We can see that the Moon is round.
We’ll eliminate the interference,
and the next pictures will be better.
Soon newspapers had
published fantastic pictures.
For the first time in history
the world saw the far side of the Moon.
Top Secret.
Draft CPSU CC and Soviet
of Ministers’ decision.
Build an interplanetary
ship with 2-3 crew members
to fly around the Moon
and return to the Earth.
Time of performance: 1961-1964.
For the manned flight to the Moon
Mikhail Tihonravov’s
department suggested a design
for a new spaceship named Soyuz.
The complex consists
of three types of ships.
A two-man manned
spacecraft, a space tug,
and 4 fuel carriers that
will allow it to go to the Moon and back.
The Soyuz model had been completed,
when Korolyov met with
an unexpected competition.
Vladimir Chelomey suggested his
own version of a Moon flight.
Vladimir Chelomey.
A renowned spacecraft
designer, academician.
Designed cruise missiles,
spacecrafts, and orbital stations.
Along with Korolyov,
was among the country’s
top secret scientists.
Chelomey suggested the
UR-500K three-stage rocket
and LK1 spaceship.
Chelomey’s system had
obvious advantages.
His rocket had a bigger
carrying capacity,
and the ship  a smaller mass,
since it was designed for one pilot.
It allowed avoiding a complex
docking operation on the orbit
and sending the ship with a
pilot directly to the Moon.
Today Chelomey’s rocket,
Proton, is used for launching
interplanetary stations
and heavy satellites.
October 14, 2010, the 360th
launch of the Proton took place.
It’s globally recognized as one
of the most reliable rockets.
20 tons at the support orbit!
This is 15 more than R7
gives us. We need this rocket.
What about the ship?
“Soyus is better, of course.
It would allow us to fly
around the Moon and land on it.
Chelomey’s ship wasn’t good
enough for a flight to the Moon.
One crew member would be
unable to deal with all the work
necessary during the flight and landing.
The best decision was found:
combining Korolyov’s Soyuz
with the Proton rocket.
The only thing remained to be done:
testing the Soyuz on the orbit.
After that, the way
to the Moon would be open.
Designer General was working
on the protocols for docking,
astronauts’ passage from one
ship to another through space.
January 5, 1966, Sergey
Korolyov was admitted
to the Kremlin Hospital in Granovsky St.
for an elective surgery.
Korolyov took some
books with him, including
Stanislaw Lem’s sci-fi
novels. He was planning to
take a break from his hard work.
The surgery began in
the morning January 14.
In its course the surgeons
detected a misdiagnosis.
The polyp appeared to
be a malignant tumor.
The surgeons were able
to finish the surgery.
However, the designer’s heart failed
under hours-long anesthesia,
and Korolyov died.
Two days later, Pravda
published his portrait,
and the country saw for
the first time the man,
who had blazed a path to
space for the whole world.
One of the Soviet Union’s
top secret scientists
became one of the most
famous people in the world.
January 17, from noon till 8 PM,
Muscovites were bringing flowers
to the  Pillar Hall of
the House of the Unions.
Three days later, as if to
commemorate Sergey Korolyov,
another “flower” opened on the Moon.
The Luna 9 Soviet station had
landed on Earth’s satellite
for the first time in history.
The first launch of the Soyuz
took place a year after Korolyov’s death.
April 23, 1967, at 5 AM,
a ship piloted by Vladimir Komarov
was launched from
Baikonur’s Launch Pad 1.
Simultaneously, a 3-man ship
was preparing to take off
from Launch Pad 31.
Astronauts Bykovsky, Yeliseyev,
and Khrunov were to execute
the first orbital docking
with Komarov’s ship.
Problems began immediately
after Soyuz 1’s ascent to orbit.
The left solar battery
still wouldn’t open.
The ship was quickly
losing power margin.
The launch of the second
ship was cancelled,
and Komarov was ordered to
prepare for emergency landing.
Attention! Everybody stay in contact,
be prepared for emergency
locking on Soyuz 1.
Come in. The ship is on line.
Comrade Komarov, hello. Do you copy me?
Hello. I read you loud and clear.
The then prime minister Aleksey Kosygin
was talking to Komarov.
We are thoroughly following your flight.
We know about the
problems you have faced
and are doing everything
we can to solve them.
What can we do for you?
Take care of my family.
24 hours after the launch,
Komarov was instructed to land
on his 19th circuit, in the Orsk region.
Finally, the retropack was activated.
The ship entered the atmosphere.
The operators sighed in relief.
The Soyuz was approaching the Earth.
But the main parachute wouldn’t
open during the descent.
The ship started to spin. The secondary
parachute released automatically,
but its lines were
caught in the spinning,
and the canopy never opened.
Soyuz 1 crashed to
the ground on 60 m/sec.
When the rescuers arrived
at the landing site,
they saw there debris caught in flame.
The fire was put out by the locals.
That’s how pilot-astronaut,
twice Hero of the Soviet Union
Vladimir Komarov met his death.
The first successful
Soyuz launch took place
October 26, 1968. It was
piloted by Georgy Beregovoy.
Later a docking was also executed,
allowing to create the
first orbital station.
Since then, over 100 Soyuz ships
of various modifications have been to space.
At present, the Soyuz ships are
recognized the most reliable.
I have pictures.
Their rocket is ready to launch.
They are planning a
manned flight to the Moon
by the end of the year.
Flying around the Moon
does not mean landing on it.
‘They will say again
that we are lagging behind.
We need to send the command
module without the lunar one.
We can’t afford losing initiative.
May 25, 1961.
From President John Kennedy’s
message to the Congress.
It is time for this nation
to take a clearly leading role
in space achievement,
which in many ways may hold
the key to our future on earth.
In his message Kennedy
had set a concrete goal:
to send an American astronaut
to the moon by the end of 1970.
And, more importantly,
before the Soviets would.
The President had consulted
with Wernher von Braun,
who said that this task was feasible.
The Americans chose to turn a blind eye
to von Braun’s Nazi past.
The success of the whole
American space program
depended on him.
Von Braun came forward with a
proposal similar to Korolyov’s.
A lunar complex could be
assembled on the near-earth orbit
from several modules and
then sent to the Moon.
A new question arise: how to secure
a precise and soft landing
for the huge complex?
Also, how to launch
it later from the Moon?
We don’t need to
land the whole complex.
Why don’t we split it in two units?
A rocket will deliver the ship to the Moon
and stay on its orbit.
The ship will detach itself from it
and land on the Moon.
After the moonwalk, the astronauts
will return to the ship, launch it,
and dock to the rocket that
will carry them back to Earth.
Thus we can use a rocket
half of the designed size.
The idea of splitting the
spaceship into two parts
was suggested by John
Houbolt. Later he confessed
that he had borrowed the
idea from Yuri Kondratiuk’s
The Conquest of Interplanetary Space.
Yuri Kondratiuk. Real
name — Aleksandr Shargey.
Soviet engineer. Designed
elevators and granaries.
Deduced the Tsiolkovsky
formula independently
and developed the basics
of the space travel theory.
In 1941 joined the
people’s volunteer corps
and was killed in battle.
NASA had ordered many
Russian books on space.
Among them was Kondratiuk’s work.
Von Braun’s team had performed
necessary calculations.
That’s how the Saturn-Apollo
project was born.
The Saturn V rocket launched
the whole Apollo to the orbit,
including the command and lunar modules.
At the Earth orbit the command
orbit docked to the lunar
and set off to the Moon. On arrival,
lunar module detached itself
and descended to the surface.
For the launch from the Moon
only a part of the lunar module
was used — the ascent module.
On the orbit it docked
back to the command unit.
The astronauts proceeded inside the ship,
the ascent module was released
and stayed on the lunar orbit.
The ship returned to the Earth.
At the same time the Soviet
lunar project was also actively developed.
It also envisaged bringing
to ships to the parking orbit
and then to the Moon.
One of them would stay on the
lunar orbit, and the other —
land on the Moon.
The control system allowed the
astronaut manually controlling
the landing, using a special porthole.
The work was in full swing,
but the money allotted by
the government was not enough.
The US government assigned
for the lunar projects finds
comparable to war-time
emergency programs:
over 24 billion dollars. Note
that only 2 billion was spent
on creating the first
nuclear bomb. 500,000 people
and around 20,000 firms
took part in the project.
The American space launch
site was being constructed
at Cape Canaveral, Florida,
where a rocket site had already existed.
In May 1963, the foundation
was laid here for a huge
assembling and testing facility
165 m high. 5 km from there,
4 launching complexes were being
constructed on the sea shore.
It took 5 years to construct a huge rig
for testing the engines.
April 16, 1965, Saturn V’s first
stage was tested at the stand.
American designers were worried
that they would be second bests again.
New launch pads were being
constructed at Baikonur.
The USSR was preparing
to take the Moon by storm.
The Americans were in a hurry.
January 27, 1967, Apollo 1
crew was conducting trials
of the ship mounted on the rocket carrier.
A random sparkle started a fire.
In the oxygen-saturated
atmosphere of the ship
the fire spread instantaneously.
Astronauts Virgil Grissom,
Edward White, and Roger Chaffee
died in the fire.
The Apollos used pure oxygen atmosphere,
since it required lower pressure
inside the ship than air,
allowing to decrease the ship’s weight.
Thus, the hull walls could be thinner.
Soviet spaceships used normal air.
The first two trials of
Saturn V were successful.
To save time, the third
unmanned launch was cancelled,
and preparations for
a manned flight began.
But the lunar module
wasn’t ready for trials.
It was suggested then
to launch a 3-man ship
to fly around the Moon without landing.
Nobody had ever reached escape velocity
for a cabin with astronauts before.
Nobody knew how interplanetary
space would affect people.
Intelligence data sped
up the final decision:
another rocket was being prepared
for the launch at Baikonur.
There were reasons to believe
that it carried a manned ship.
NASA leadership decided to take a risk.
December 21, 1968, Apollo
8 set off to the Moon.
It was the first time that a manned ship
approached the Earth’s satellite.
During its 9th circuit, the
ship started live broadcast,
letting millions of people on Earth
see the Moon on their screens.
The flight to the Moon and back
takes over 5 days on escape velocity.
During this time, all crew members
are to maintain active lifestyle:
work, eat, use the toilet, and exercise.
However, the simplest actions
become a special procedure
under the state of weightlessness.
Yuri Gagarin was the first
to take a meal in space.
Pureed sorrels with meat,
meat pate and chocolate sauce
were on the menu.
To prevent food bits from
flying all over the cabin,
the scientists decided to
put it into aluminum tubes.
All food in the tubes was mashed into paste
and consumed cold.
Only in the early 1970s
the astronauts began taking
specially constructed hot plates with them
and heat the tubes.
Today, the space menu
has become more versatile:
food is placed into
tins or multilayered bags
and heat up in special
cells on the workbench.
September 1966.
Two years before the
American’s first Moon flight.
By order from Head of the
Cosmonaut Squad Nikolay Kamanin
the L3 group was formed for
preparing the Moon expedition.
It included Aleksey
Leonov, Yuri Gagarin,
Andriyan Nikolayev, Viktor
Gorbatko, Yevgeny Khrunov,
and Vladimir Shatalov.
September 18, 1968.
3 months before the first
American Moon flight.
The Soviet Zond 5 reached
the Moon and flew around it.
It had on board a
container with two turtles.
For the first time Earth-born
beings rounded the Moon
and came back to Earth.
November 10, 1968.
One month to the first
American Moon flight.
Zond 6 spacecraft went round the Moon.
It had completed the flight mission,
but the descent module
crashed during the landing.
Soviet spacecrafts were reaching
the Moon and coming back.
A ship for Moon landing was
already going through tests.
NPP Zvezda designed the
Krechet lunar spacesuit.
The Soviet astronauts
knew that the Americans
would go to the Moon
in the next few days
and didn’t want to give
up their superiority.
A group of 6 astronauts sent
a letter to the Politburo,
requesting permission
to set off to the Moon
in the next few days.
We suggest replacing the trial launch
with the first manned flight
outside the terrestrial orbit.
The ship’s reliability
will increase significantly,
if there will be people on board.
We know that the flight
might end up in a crash,
but we are prepared
to sacrifice our lives.
Aleksey Leonov, Oleg
Makarov, Valery Bykovsky,
Nikolay Rukavishnikov, Pavel Popovich,
Vitaly Sevastyanov.
In early December all 6 went to Baikonur
and stayed there for a week,
hoping for launch orders.
It never came. The Soviet government,
after Komarov’s tragic death,
chose not to take the risk.
July 16, 1969, Apollo 11
entered the near-earth orbit
with Neil Armstrong, Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin,
and Michael Collins on board.
100 hrs 12 min after the
launch, the Eagle lunar module,
carrying Armstrong and Aldrin,
released from the ship and
started descend to the Moon.
Armstrong switched to manual control.
The module’s fuel supply
allowed only 140 sec of maneuvering.
The lunar surface proved not too smooth:
rocks, ravines, craters.
The module was 20 m above the surface,
when Armstrong finally saw
a spot free of rocks and ruts
and guided the module to it.
"60 seconds". This command meant
that the remaining fuel
would last them only 60 seconds.
"50 seconds".
The situation was almost critical.
Armstrong was given clear instructions:
when the countdown would come to 20,
he was to stop the descent,
start the booster engine,
detach from the descent
module and return to the orbit.
In this case, their mission 
would have failed.
"40 seconds". The plume was raising dust
clouds from the lunar surface.
The MCC remained silent for
fear to distract Armstrong.
The pilot could hardly
see through the dust.
His pulse rose to 156.
30 seonds.
10 seconds to the critical line.
78 hours, 45 minutes, and
40 seconds after the launch,
the Eagle was standing on the Moon.
Houston, Tranquility Base
here. The Eagle has landed.
Roger, Tranquility. We
copy you on the ground.
You got a bunch of guys about to turn blue.
We're breathing again. Thanks a lot.
July 21, 1969, the lunar
module’s hatch opened.
The black-and-white
TV camera turned on,
and the broadcast of the
historical event started.
For some reason,
the first 30 seconds the
picture was turned upside down.
Holding on the handrails,
Neil carefully walked down the ramp
and put both his feet on the footing.
OK, I'm going to step off the LEM now.
He felt the ground with his
foot… and stepped on the Moon.
That's one small step for a
man, one giant leap for mankind.
15 minutes later, Aldrin
joined him on the Moon surface.
The commander and the pilot
stood facing each other.
A small blue hemisphere
was above them in the sky:
planet Earth.
Aldrin tried various methods
of walking the lunar surface,
from wide steps to kangaroo leaps,
but decided that normal
walking was the best method
for the astronauts clad in spacesuits.
The lunar spacesuit consisted
of 25 layers of various materials.
For thermoregulation, the astronauts
were wearing special suits
permeated with a network of
pipes with circulating water.
The outer layer protected
them from mechanical damage.
The space costume weighed
80 kilos on the Earth
and 13 on the Moon.
The communication system
allowed the astronauts
talking to each other and the Center.
The astronauts took several
lunar ground samples:
with a scoop from the
surface and with cores —
special tubes hammered into the ground
and then extracted with samples inside.
They mounted a lunar
seismometer and a device
for accurate measurement of the distance
between the Moon and the Earth.
Amstrong spent 2 hrs 13 min on the Moon,
and Aldrich — 1 hr 46 min.
Before coming back inside the module,
Neil stood for a minute at the ramp,
saying his goodbyes to the Moon.
Then he wiped his feet on the
footing, as if it were a rug,
pushed off and flew
up to the first ring.
Taking off their
headpieces in the cabin,
they felt a pungent smell,
reminding one of gunpowder.
It was the smell of the Moon.
Before leaving home, they
left at the landing spot
a US flag and medals
commemorating Yuri Gagarin,
Vladimir Komarov, and
Apollo 1 crew members:
Virgil Grissom, Edward
White, and Roger Chaffee.
As part of the Apollo project,
6 successful Moon landings took place.
Only one mission, Apollo
13, ended up in a crash.
Fortunately, all astronauts
came back to Earth safe.
Electric cars, delivered to
the Moon, allowed astronauts
to drive 5-7 km away
from the landing site.
The last flight to the Moon
took place in December 1972.
This expedition brought back
over 110 kilos of lunar ground.
For over 40 years the
Apollo 1 descent stage,
that had carried Neil Armstrong
and Buzz Aldrin to the moon,
has been standing on the Moon surface.
When it’s lit by sun,
a plaque saying, “WE CAME
IN PEACE FOR ALL MANKIND.”
NIP 10, THE CRIMEA, JULY 20, 1969
Stable picture from the
Apollo. TV signal is weak.
There are still people who claim
that the Americans have
never been to the Moon,
and all the famous
broadcasts from the flight
were pre-recorded in Hollywood.
The skeptics quote many arguments.
Most often, they refer 
to the fluttering banner,
saying that, since the
Moon has no atmosphere,
the flag mounted by the astronauts
shouldn’t have fluttered.
However, they forget
that under low gravity
and the lack of atmosphere the
inertial force is more active.
While setting and unfolding the flag,
the astronauts had given it an impulse
which couldn’t have dissipated
as quickly as it does on Earth.
More importantly,
the Soviet Union watched
the Apollo program closely
and would have nipped in the
bud any attempt of forgery.
A radio control complex
was operating at the
Center for Space
Communications near Simferopol,
which received all signals
from American ships:
astronauts’ communications
with the Earth,
information on onboard systems
status, and even TV signal.
Having analyzed the collected
data, Soviet scientists
confirmed the fact that the
Americans had been to the Moon.
THE CRIME, SHKOLNY SETTLEMENT,
GROUND STATION 10, 1969
– What’s in the car, Comrade Colonel?
– The secret weapon. A lunar tank.
December 21, 1968, the US
Apollo 8 left to the Moon,
and the Soviet manned ship flight
had lost its political importance.
A decision was made to
send to the Moon not a man
but a robot managed from the Earth.
Georgy Babakin was entrusted
with supervising this program.
Georgy Babakin. An
outstanding rocket designer,
D.Sc. in Engineering. Expert
on automatic control systems.
Chief Designer with NPO Lavochkin.
Babakin’s bureau constructed
Luna 9 automatic station,
executing the first
soft landing on the Moon
after Sergey Korolyov’s death.
It was followed by a series
of successful launches.
Luna 10 became the Moon’s
first artificial satellite.
Luna 11 studied anomalies in
the Moon’s gravitation field.
Luna 12 conducted an extensive
photomapping of the lunar surface.
Luna 13 carried out a soft
landing in the Ocean of Storms.
Luna 14 tested a space radio complex
intended for using in manned expeditions.
July 13, 1969, only 3 days
before the Apollo 11 launch,
the Proton rocket took off Baikonur.
10 seconds. Flight is nominal.
20 seconds. Flight is nominal.
Proton was carrying Luna 15 to the Moon.
It was to carry out a unique
operation: make a soft landing,
take probes of the lunar
ground, and bring them back.
Three days later, Apollo 11 was launched.
At that time, Luna 15 was approaching
the Earth’s satellite.
Next day it entered
the near-Moon orbit.
The moon race had
entered its final stretch.
Luna 15 had remained on the
orbit until Apollo’s arrival.
Why? There are three versions.
First, because of a
malfunction on its board.
Second, to study the
Moon’s gravitation field.
Third, the US asked the USSR
to hold the station’s operation
to avoid interfering
with Apollo’s landing.
Anyway, Luna 15’s retro engine turned on
only after Apollo 11’s
successful landing.
The station was lead for landing.
There was no detailed map
of the Moon available then.
Soviet scientists had no way to know
that there was a mountain in
the calculated landing spot.
The station crashed into it.
A year later, September 24,
1970, Luna 16 automatic station
made a soft landing on the
moon, drilled the lunar ground,
and brought samples to the Earth.
The scientists were able to lay their hands
on a piece of lunar ground weighing 101 g
from the Sea of Fecundity.
Two more times Babakin’s
stations had landed on the Moon,
and return vehicles brought
samples to the Earth.
In September 1968, the Simferopol
Center for Space Communications
grounds were unusually busy.
Officers were watching a remote-control
mechanism moving around a special lot.
They already knew that it was
soon to be sent to the Moon.
In May 1968, several dozens officers
of the command and measurement complex
were going through thorough
physical examination.
They weren’t going to space,
but the selection was as
strict as if they were.
Only after the committee’s meeting
the 14 selected candidates
were briefed on the subject.
They were to become Lunokhod crews.
To control the spacecraft,
rotating crews were needed.
Each had a commander, a driver,
a navigator, flight engineer,
aerial operator, backup
driver, and operator in it.
November 17, 1970,
Luna 17 successfully
landed in the Sea of Rains.
2.5 hours were spent on
studying the landing spot.
After that, the ramp was extended,
and the world’s first exploration rover
descended to the ground.
Lunokhod 1 carried scientific equipment,
aerials for communications
with Earth, 4 telephotometers
for broadcasting panoramas
and stereo images,
and video cameras.
Controlling the rover proved
the most complicated task.
The picture came back in
over contrast, with no grades,
and TV cameras were mounted
too low on Lunokhod 1.
One of them was operating
and the other — backup.
Engineer-designer Garry Rogovsky.
“All we saw was black and white spots.
“It was impossible to
tell rocks from craters.
“One needed a lot of skills
and experience to sort it out.”
To get one picture took from 3 
to 20 seconds, depending on the terrain.
It was very hard to navigate
in these conditions.
The crews took 2-hour shifts.
120 minutes of extremely
important and hard work
were the limit even for
specially trained officers.
The estimated spacecraft’s
time resource was 3 months.
The research program was
adjusted to this term.
It was completed February 20, 1971.
However, the rover was still operating.
The scientists developed a program 
for one more lunar day, then another.
In total, Lunokhod 1 had operated
for 10 months instead of 3.
March 8, 1971, the Lunokhod
drivers drew two elegant eights
on the lunar surface with its wheels.
The results of Lunokhod
1’s work were impressive:
10 km traveled, over
20,000 pictures taken.
2 years later, Luna 21
automatic interplanetary station
delivered Lunokhod 2 to the Moon.
Its descent stage almost
fall into a crater,
landing 3 meters from its
edge. Lunokhod 2 slid inside.
Fortunately, it hadn’t overturned.
The navigators were burdened
with tremendous load.
They had to position the
rover according to the Sun
and the surrounding terrain,
with no map or photos of the area.
They were saved by a lucky chance.
Immediately after Luna 21 landing
an American scholarly
delegation came to Moscow.
At a meeting, one of the
scientists approached Ivanovsky,
head designer for lunar
studies with Lavochkin’s bureau,
and without a word put
an envelope in his pocket.
Inside was a detailed photo
of the Luna 21 landing site.
This photograph, serving
as a map, saved Lunokhod 2.
It had completed much
more than its predecessor.
Owing to the crews’ experience
and an upgraded TV system
the rover was able to drive
around 40 km in 4 months.
Recently more and more attention is drawn
to exploring the Moon with robots.
Astrobotic Technology
Inc conducted a research,
ordered by NASA, and
defined types of robots
necessary to equip a landing
site for a lunar base.
It was suggested to send 2
robotic bulldozers to the Moon
to clear a site for the construction.
Japan is planning to build a robotic base
near the Moon’s south pole by 2020.
Its major work unit
will be crawler androids.
Russia is planning to
launch a research moon rover
of a new type, designed
by NPO Lavochkin.
It became clear that
even powerful countries
like the US and the USSR
were unable to afford
the tremendous expenditures
required for space exploration.
The most reasonable thing
would be to combine efforts.
July 15, 1975, at 3:20 PM, Soyuz 19,
piloted by Aleksey
Leonov and Valery Kubasov,
took off from Baikonur.
At 10:50 PM, Apollo 18 was
launched from Cape Canaveral with
Thomas Stafford, Vance Brand,
and Donald Slayton on board.
July 17, the two ships
approached each other for docking.
Cooperation came in the stead of a race.
