Meridian JSC, which is a member of Ukroboronprom State Concern, has joined the domestic part of the space lunar mission, carried out by the British company Spacebit in partnership with companies from around the world.
The launch is scheduled for spring 2022. This flight is the first mission to the Earth's satellite, with Ukraine participating.
According to Olha Rudenko, director for development at the Meridian, their testing laboratory will check the equipment to be used on the moon for climatic and mechanical stress. And due to a unique "hot cell" with sources of ionizing radiation up to 13 stage, these devices and equipment will be tested for radiation resistance and radiation aging.
"We also go ahead with manufacturing ultralight and heavy-duty mechanical structures for the equipment of the lunar rover, which kicks off exploring the surface of the Earth's satellite in a year. We will get an opportunity to touch the future and see how the products of our company help to conquer space," Olha Rudenko says.
First, equipment for examination of soils, testing of sample selection technology, collecting information on thermal properties and magnetic field and others will be sent to the Moon. The cargo will first reach the large crater Lacus Mortis on the near side of the moon, and after that – to the dark spot Oceanus Procellarum on the surface of the celestial body.
Sensors manufactured at Ukrainian enterprises shall collect information about the radiation background, and a special camera will stream video from the surface. All the data obtained will be available to Ukrainian scientists for the development of space programs.
Delivery of Ukraine's flag, printed on a 3D printer made of Ukrainian titanium, will become symbolic. It was manufactured under a special "green" or waste-free production technology. This was announced by the Spacebit founder and CEO Pavlo Tanasyuk.
"It's a great honor for us to be the team that brings the flag of Ukraine to the surface of the Moon for the first time in history and carries out the first Ukrainian mission to the Earth's satellite. At the same time, synergies with the public sector are important in this area. We set a high value on our cooperation with Ukroboronprom, in particular with the Meridian OJSC and Yuzhnoye State Design Office. We are open to a new partnership to revive Ukraine's image as a leading country in the world space scene," Mr. Tanasyuk said.
The mission is part of the NASA CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) program, a commercial cargo handling program to the moon.
Sources: Ukroboronprom
