40 percent lunar missions in last 60 years failed: NASA fact sheet
New Delhi, Sep 7: The success rate of lunar missions undertaken in the last six decades is 60 per cent, according to US space agency NASA's 'Moon Fact Sheet'.
Of the 109 lunar missions during the period, 61 were successful and 48 had failed, it stated.
In the early hours of Saturday, Indian space agency ISRO's plan to soft land Chandrayaan-2's Vikram module on the lunar surface did not go as per script.
The lander lost communication with ground stations during its final descent. ISRO officials said, adding that the orbiter of Chandrayaan-2 second lunar mission remains healthy and safe.
This year, Israel, too, launched its lunar mission Beresheet in February 2018 but it crash landed in April.
From 1958 to 2019, India as well as the US, the USSR (now Russia), Japan, the European Union, China and Israel launched different lunar missions from orbiters, landers and flyby (orbiting the Moon, landing on the Moon and flying by the Moon).
The first mission to the Moon was planned by the US in August 17, 1958, but the launch of Pioneer 0 was unsuccessful.
The first successful mission to the Moon was Luna 1 by the USSR on January 4, 1959. It was also the first 'Moon flyby' mission. The success had come only in the sixth mission.
In a span of a little more than a year, from August 1958 to November 1959, the US and the USSR launched 14 missions.
Of these, only three Luna 1, Luna 2 and Luna 3 -- were successful. All were launched by the USSR.
The Ranger 7 mission launched in July 1964 by the US was the first to take close-up pictures of the Moon.
The first lunar soft landing and first pictures from the lunar surface came from Luna 9, launched by the USSR in January 1966.
Five months later, in May 1966, the US successfully launched a similar mission Surveyor-1.
The Apollo 11 mission was the landmark mission through which humans first stepped on to the lunar surface. The three-crewed mission was headed by Neil Armstrong.
From 1958 to 1979, only the US and the USSR launched Moon missions. In these 21 years, the two countries launched 90 missions. There was a lull in the decade that followed with no lunar missions from 1980-89.
Japan, the European Union, China, India and Israel were late entrants.
Japan launched Hiten, an orbiter mission in January 1990. This was also Japan's first Moon mission. After that, in September 2007, Japan launched Selene, another orbiter mission.
There were six lunar missions from 2000-2009 Europe (Smart-1), Japan (Selene), China (Chang'e 1), India (Chandrayaan-1) and the US (Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter and LC CROSS).
From 2009-2019, ten missions have been launched of which five have been sent by India, three by the US, and one each by India and Israel.
Since 1990, the US, Japan, India, the European Union, China and Israel launched 19 lunar missions.
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Nitish likely to file nominations for Rajya Sabha polls
Patna (PTI): Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is likely to file nomination papers for the Rajya Sabha polls on Thursday, according to JD(U) leaders.
Kumar may file his nomination papers at the state assembly around 11 am, they said.
BJP president Nitin Nabin will also file his nomination papers for the Rajya Sabha polls.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah is expected to be present at the time of filing of the nomination papers.
State minister Vijay Kumar Chaudhary had confirmed on Wednesday that Kumar was considering entering the Rajya Sabha, which would bring to an end his tenure as the longest-serving chief minister of the state.
With Kumar likely to step down after leading the ruling NDA to a landslide victory in the 2025 assembly elections, a BJP leader is expected to take over the top post.
If that happens, Bihar will get its first BJP chief minister -- the only Hindi heartland state where the party has not held the office so far.
However, an official announcement regarding Kumar's entry into the Upper House of Parliament is yet to be made.
Five Rajya Sabha seats from Bihar will go to the polls on March 16.
The elections will be held as the tenures of JD(U)'s Harivansh Narayan Singh and Ram Nath Thakur, RJD's Prem Chand Gupta and Amarendra Dhari Singh, and RLM's Upendra Kushwaha are ending.
As per the latest tally in the state legislature, all five seats would now go to the ruling NDA.
Before filing his nomination papers, the BJP president will visit the revered Mahavir Temple here and offer prayers.
