Friday, August 11th liftoff. Russia is about to head for the Moon once again, come with me and preview the launch of the mighty Soyuz 2 rocket as the proud Russian tradition of Space firsts continues..@irishmaninrussiaA partial from Reuters:

Russia will launch its first lunar landing spacecraft in 47 years on Friday, 11th in a race with India to the south pole of the moon, a potential source of water to support a future human presence there.

The launch from the Vostochny cosmodrome, 3,450 miles (5,550 km) east of Moscow, will take place four weeks after India sent up its Chandrayaan-3 lunar lander, due to touch down at the pole on Aug. 23.

Rough terrain makes a landing there difficult, but the south pole is a prized destination because scientists believe it may hold significant quantities of ice that could be used to extract fuel and oxygen, as well as for drinking water.