Landing and Surface Operations
On January 15 after 40 orbits, the braking rocket was fired at 16 km (9.9 mi) altitude, and the craft began to de-orbit. At an altitude of 750 m (2,460 ft) the main thrusters began firing, slowing the fall until a height of 22 m (72 ft) was reached. At this point the main thrusters shut down and the secondary thrusters ignited, slowing the fall until the lander was 1.5 m (5 ft) above the surface, where the engine was switched off. Landing occurred at 23:35 UT in Le Monnier crater at 25.85 degrees N, 30.45 degrees E.
After landing, the Lunokhod 2 took TV images of the surrounding area, then rolled down a ramp to the surface at 01:14 UT on January 16 and took pictures of the Luna 21 lander and landing site, driving for 30 metres. After a period of charging up its batteries, it took more pictures of the site and the lander, and then set off to explore the moon.
The rover would run during the lunar day, stopping occasionally to recharge its batteries with the solar panels. At night the rover hibernated until the next sunrise, heated by the radioactive source.
- January 18, 1973 to January 24, 1973: The rover drives 1,260 metres
- February 8, 1973 to February 23, 1973: The rover drives 9,086 metres further
- March 11, 1973 to March 23, 1973: The rover drives 16,533 metres further
- April 9, 1973 to April 22, 1973: The rover drives 8,600 metres further
- May 8, 1973 to June 3, 1973: The rover drives 880 metres further
Read more about this topic: Lunokhod 2
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