Russia will launch ships to the moon

The Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) announced on January 15 that it will launch an unmanned spacecraft to the moon in 2015.

Illustration of the Luna-Glob spacecraft of Russia on the moon's orbit. (Photo: NASA)

Vladimir Popovkin, head of Roscosmos, told Russian media that the missile would push a spacecraft with a mass of 500kg to the moon. Luna-Glob, the name of the spacecraft, will carry up to 25kg of scientific equipment to search for water and take soil samples, the AP reported.

"The spacecraft will be launched from Vostochny space airport in the Russian Far East , " Popovkin said.

According to Popovkin, Luna-Glob will have an orbital module and landing chamber. When the ship flew to the moon's orbit, the landing chamber would separate from the orbital module and land on the moon. It will then send data to the moon's surface to the Earth.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said the government will invest $ 1 billion to build the Vostochny space airport in the Amur region. The airport is located near the Chinese border.

The former Soviet Union once surpassed the US in the space race during the Cold War. They launched a satellite on the moon in 1959 and became the first country to bring people out to Earth in 1961. The United States put the first man on the moon in 1969 and Russia has not yet achieved the same feat. . Russia's last moon launch took place in 1973.