Posts: 32
From: Pittsburgh
Registered: Jan 2023

posted 02-12-2023 01:14 PM               

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How do the accomplishments of the Luna Program compare with those of the Apollo program?

I know that Apollo brought back more samples, but how do they compare in terms of scientific knowledge? For the record, I am in favor of human spaceflight.

Posts: 1184
From: Vancouver, WA, USA
Registered: Feb 2012

posted 02-12-2023 07:10 PM               

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The only decent metric of which I am aware would be to compare the number of peer-reviewed scientific papers published from data (and samples) collected by the U.S. Apollo lunar missions vs those papers published from the various Soviet Luna missions.

I have no idea exactly how that could be accomplished.

What could be done is to take a sample of papers published in one scientific journal, The Moon-The International Journal of Lunar Studies, for one year, say 1974, and count the papers. I can do this and will post my results here, if you think it would be of value.

Posts: 32
From: Pittsburgh
Registered: Jan 2023

Posts: 1184
From: Vancouver, WA, USA
Registered: Feb 2012

posted 02-13-2023 05:54 PM               

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The number of papers published in two Volumes of The Moon-An International Journal of Lunar Studies was too small to be significant. I switched tact and examined 121 abstracts out the 193 papers given at the Fifth Lunar Science Conference in 1974. This is what I discovered:

Five papers used data exclusively obtained from the ground.

Eight papers used data from indeterminate sources.

108 papers used date from identifiable spacecraft sources. Of those 108 papers, only 4 referenced Soviet Luna spacecraft, Lunas 16 and 20 to be specific. None of those papers referenced Luna data exclusively, references were always combined with Apollo data.

Interestingly, no remote sensing data was cited from USSR Luna orbiting spacecraft. However, many papers referenced data obtain from orbit by Apollo spacecraft and Lunar Orbiters.