← ALL LANDERS
LANDING SITEMare Fecunditatis
LAT-0.68°
LON56.30°
MOON
Sep 20, 1970
LANDING DATE
1970
4 days
MISSION DURATION
TOTAL
-150 to 120 C
SURFACE TEMP
AT LANDING SITE
5,600
KG
MASS
4
INSTRUMENTS
SCIENTIFIC PAYLOAD
Luna 16 is a sample return lander mission by NPO Lavochkin on Moon. Landed September 20, 1970. Landing site: Mare Fecunditatis.
ABOUT LUNA 16
Luna 16 was the first robotic spacecraft to land on the Moon and return a sample to Earth — an achievement rivaling the crewed Apollo missions in technological complexity. It landed in Mare Fecunditatis, drilled into the surface to a depth of 35 centimeters, sealed the sample in a return capsule, and launched back to Earth, where it landed in Kazakhstan on September 24, 1970, with 101 grams of lunar soil.
KEY DISCOVERIES
- Returned 101 grams of lunar soil
- Mare Fecunditatis basalt composition characterized
- Demonstrated feasibility of robotic sample return
TECHNOLOGY & FIRSTS
- First robotic sample return from the Moon
- First automated return of extraterrestrial material
- Drill retrieved soil from 35 cm depth
SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTS (4)
Drill sampling arm
Television cameras
Radiation detector
Return capsule hermetic container
SPACECRAFT SPECIFICATIONS
Mass5,600 kg (12,348 lbs)
PowerBattery
CommunicationsRadio transmitter
Design Life5 days
Landing DateSeptember 20, 1970
Mission EndSeptember 24, 1970
ProgramLuna
SURFACE DATA
Surface Temperature-150 to 120 C
OTHER MOON LANDERS
🚀 LAUNCH MISSION