<h5>What did Russia launch?</h5><p>Roscosmos (Russia’s space agency) launched the Luna-25 mission from the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Russia on 11th August 2023. Despite launching around a month after India’s <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.newsahoot.com/articles/bahubali-rocket-to-send-chandrayaan-3-to-the-moon">Chandrayaan-3</a>, the Russian spacecraft might reach the moon’s south pole before Chandrayaan-3.</p><p>This is Russia’s first moon-landing spacecraft launched since 1976. Russia also aims to be the first country to perform a soft landing on the lunar south pole (scientists think the moon’s south pole contains valuable pockets of water ice). The Russian spacecraft will move towards the moon in around five and a half days.</p><p>Then, it will spend some days in a 100-kilometre orbit before landing on the moon’s surface. Head of Roscosmos, Yuri Borisov, says the lander is expected to land on the moon’s surface on 21st August 2023. Earlier, the expected landing date was 23rd August 2023 (the same day as Chandrayaan-3). Both missions have different landing zones.</p><div class="raw-html-embed"><figure> <video width="100%" controls=""> <source src="https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/newsahoot.appspot.com/o/india-and-russia-are-racing-to-the-moon%2FLuna%2025%20launch.mp4?alt=media&amp;token=b4ce2002-89ad-4c62-9eb3-9e775e5eed03" type="video/mp4"> </video> <figcaption>The launch of the Luna-25 spacecraft. Video by Russia in South Africa.</figcaption> </figure></div><h5>What is Luna-25 carrying?</h5><p>Luna-25 is approximately the size of a small car. The lander has four legs, including landing rockets, fuel tanks, solar panels, computers, and a robotic arm. The robotic arm is fitted with a scoop to collect various lunar samples. The lander also has multiple pieces of equipment to investigate the exosphere.</p><p>Luna 25, also known as the Luna-Glob-Lander, aims to study the moon's polar soil composition, the dust and plasma found in the very thin lunar exosphere. The lander aims to operate on the moon for one year. Now, we will have to wait and see which country becomes the first to reach the moon’s south pole.</p><h5>What updates do we have about Chandrayaan-3?</h5><div class="raw-html-embed"><figure> <video width="100%" controls=""> <source src="https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/newsahoot.appspot.com/o/india-and-russia-are-racing-to-the-moon%2FChandrayaan%203.mp4?alt=media&amp;token=30045c0b-94dd-4c1c-811c-f9de8a0e2a61" type="video/mp4"> </video> <figcaption>The moon from Chandrayaan-3 during Lunar Orbit Insertion. Video by ISRO.</figcaption> </figure></div><p>On 5th August 2023, the Chandrayaan-3 completed the Lunar Orbit Insertion (LOI). This means that it is currently orbiting the moon. The health of the spacecraft is normal.</p><p>Several manoeuvres are planned to gradually decrease Chandrayaan-3's orbit and place it over the moon’s poles. Two of them have been successfully performed on the 6th and 9th of August 2023. On 23rd August 2023, the lander will land on the moon's south polar region.</p>

Russia has launched a spacecraft that is expected to reach the moon around the same time as Chandrayaan-3.

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India and Russia are Racing to the Moon

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