Babakin, one of the founders of the Lunokhod, dies. The initial research was conducted by OKB-1, but later moved to the Transmash tank plant, and then to Lavochkin, where it was led by the geniuses of Alexander Kemurdzhian and Georgi Babakin (who died in August 1971 at the height of its success). The rover was initially intended for cosmonauts on the Moon to navigate from one LK to another in case of problems. It was tested among the volcanoes of Kamchatka. It was heated by 11 kg of polonium-210. It had eight electric motors and, in the event of a wheel failure, could be blown up with a small explosive charge. The top feature was a solar panel and a radiator. A lunardrome was even built in Crimea to test it.
