Zond 6
Zond 6 — the second Soviet flight around the Moon and back (November 1968). It passed 2,420 km from the Moon on 14 November, photographing it, and came home with a fully automatic guided re-entry. But its capsule had slowly lost its air — which would have killed a crew — and its parachute was released too high: on 17 November it crashed 16 km from where it had been launched. Some of its film was saved.
Key facts
Mission & specifications
Mission
- Operator
- TsKBEM (USSR)
- Launched
- November 10, 1968
- Status
- Lost
Mission
Zond 6 was the second Soviet 7K-L1 to fly around the Moon, launched on 10 November 1968. Its main antenna failed to deploy, and the attitude sensor mounted on its boom went with it, so controllers used a backup. On 14 November it rounded the far side of the Moon 2,420 km away and photographed it, some of the views in stereo pairs. It then made a fully automatic guided re-entry, dipping twice into the atmosphere to shed speed, so its capsule felt only 4 to 7 g. But during the return a seal on the hatch had leaked, and the capsule slowly lost its air — which would have killed a crew. Its altimeter, working in the thin air of the leaking capsule, released the main parachute about 5.3 km up. On 17 November the capsule smashed into the ground 16 km from its launch pad. Its biological payload was killed, but film from its cameras was recovered. NSSDCA's record says only that it landed in its planned area.
- 1968Zond 6 launches toward the Moon on a Proton rocketLaunch
The second 7K-L1 sent around the Moon.
It photographs the Moon, some views in stereo pairs.
Its leaking capsule's parachute is released too high; it crashes 16 km from its launch pad.
Images
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