MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 18th April, 2021) Russian space agency Roscosmos has chosen the Orenburg region, located near the border with Kazakhstan, as the landing site for the planned Oryol (Orel, or Eagle) manned missions to the Moon, according to information released on the government procurement website.
The chosen location is about 64.5 kilometers (40 miles) southeast of the Russian city of Orenburg. There are no settlements within an 8-kilometer radius from the landing site, which has been picked for the Oryol spacecraft's return from the Moon or near-Earth orbit.
The choice for the Oryol landing site was narrowed down to just four locations back in 2018. It had to be an unpopulated and non-mountainous region, no higher than 1,640 feet above sea level.
The Oryol (Orel) spacecraft is being developed for deep space missions, primarily in lunar orbit, and is being designed as a potential replacement for Russia's Soyuz spacecraft.
Oryol lunar missions are expected to start in 2028-2030. In 2023, an unmanned Oryol mission to the near-Earth orbit is planned, while the spacecraft's first manned flight from the Vostochny cosmodrome is scheduled for 2025.
