Effects of rocket engines on laser during lunar landing

In the Chinese moon exploration project “ChangE-3”, the laser telemeter and lidar are important equipments on the lunar landing vehicle. A low-thrust vernier rocket engine works during the soft landing, whose plume may influence on the laser equipments. An experiment has first been accomplished to evaluate the influence of the plume on the propagation characteristics of infrared laser under the vacuum condition. Combination with our theoretical analysis has given an appropriate assessment of the plumeʼs effects on the infrared laser hence providing a valuable basis for the design of lunar landing systems.