Appendix B: Lunar Probes, Attempted and Successful
| Name | Country | Launch Date | Vehicle | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thor-Able I (Pioneer) | U.S.A.a | Aug. 17,1958 | Thor-Able | 1st attempt to probe Moon: failed. |
| Pioneer 1 | U.S.A. | Oct. 11, 1958 | Thor-Able | Failed to reach Moon; sent 43 hr of data. |
| Pioneer 2 | U.S.A. | Nov. 8, 1958 | Thor-Able | Failed to reach Moon. |
| Pioneer 3 | U.S.A. | Dec. 6, 1958 | Juno II | Failed to reach Moon; provided radiation data. |
| Luna I | U.S.S.R. | Jan. 2, 1959 | A-1 | Passed within 6000 km of the Moon; went into solar orbit. |
| Pioneer 4 | U.S.A. | Mar. 3, 1959 | Juno II | Passed within 60 000 km of the Moon; went into solar orbit. |
| Luna 2 | U.S.S.R. | Sept. 12, 1959 | A-l | 1st probe to impact on Moon. |
| Luna 3 | U.S.S.R. | Oct. 4, 1959 | A-l | 1st probe to photograph Moon's far side. |
| Atlas-Able 4 (Pioneer (P-3)) | U.S.A. | Nov. 26, 1959 | Atlas-Able | Failed to reach Moon. |
| Atlas-Able SA (Pioneer (P-30)) | U.S.A. | Sept. 25, 1960 | Atlas-Able | Failed to reach Moon. |
| Atlas-Able SB (Pioneer (P-3)) | U.S.A. | Dec. 15, 1960 | Atlas-Able | Failed to reach Moon. |
| Ranger 3 | U.S.A. | Jan. 26, 1962 | Atlas-Agena B | Missed Moon by 36 800 km; ended in solar orbit. |
| Ranger 4 | U.S.A. | Apr. 23,1962 | Atlas-Agena B | Impacted on Moon, but cameras and experiments did not operate. |
| Ranger 5 | U.S.A. | Oct. 18, 1962 | Atlas-Agena B | Missed Moon by 725 km; ended in solar orbit. |
| No name | U.S.S.R. | Jan. 4, 1963 | A-2-e | Probable lunar probe; failed. |
| Luna 4 | U.S.S.R. | Apr. 2, 1963 | A-2-e | Attempted soft landing; missed Moon by 8500 km; went into barycentric orbit. |
| Ranger 6 | U.S.A. | Jan. 30, 1964 | Atlas-Agena B | Impacted on Moon; TV system did not function during approach. |
| Ranger 7 | U.S.A. | July 28,1964 | Atlas-Agena B | 1st successful Ranger mission; impacted on Moon after taking 4308 pictures of lunar surface during approach. |
| Ranger8 | U.S.A. | Feb. 17, 1965 | Atlas-Agena B | Impacted on Moon after returning 7137 closeup pictures. |
| Kosmos 60 | U.S.S.R. | Mar. 12, 1965 | A-2-e | Probable lunar probe: failed. |
| Ranger 9 | U.S.A. | Mar. 21,196 | Atlas-Agena B | Impacted in crater Alphonsus after returning 5814 pictures. |
| Luna 5 | U.S.S.R. | May 9, 1965 | A-2-e | Attempted soft landing by U.S.S.R.: impacted on Moon. |
| Luna 6 | U.S.S.R. | June 8, 1965 | A-2-e | Attempted soft landing: missed Moon by 161 000 km and went into solar orbit. |
| Zond 3 | U.S.S.R. | July 18, 1965 | A-2-e | Transmitted 25 pictures of lunar far side taken dunng lunar flyby; went into solar orbit. |
| Luna 7 | U.S.S.R. | Oct. 4, 1965 | A-2-e | Attempted soft landing: impacted on Moon. |
| Luna 8 | U.S.S.R. | Dec. 3, 1965 | A-2-e | Attempted soft landing: impacted on Moon. |
| Luna 9 | U.S.S.R. | Jan. 31, 1966 | A-2-e | 1st successful soft landing by U. S. S. R.; returned 27 pictures of lunar surface in 3 days. |
| Kosmos III | U.S.S.R. | Mar. 1, 1966 | A-2-e | Suspected lunar probe: failed. |
| Luna 10 | U.S.S.R. | Mar. 31, 1966 | A-2-e | Achieved lunar orbit; transmitted physical measurements for nearly 2 months. |
| Surveyor 1 | U.S.A. | May 30, 1966 | Atlas-Centaur | Successful soft landing; transmitted I 1 237 pictures of lunar surface. |
| Explorer 33 | U.S.A. | July 1, 1966 | Thrust-augmented Delta (TAD) | Attempted lunar orbit not achieved; in barycentric orbit. |
| Lunar Orbiter I | U.S.A. | Aug. 10, 1966 | Atlas-Agena D | Successful orbital photographic mission; photographed Moon until Aug. 29, 1966; impacted on Moon Oct. 29,1966. |
| Luna II | U.S.S.R. | Aug. 24,1966 | A-2-e | Achieved lunar orbit; transmitted data until Oct. 1, 1966. |
| Surveyor 2 | U.S.A. | Sept. 20, 1966 | Atlas-Centaur | Attempted soft landing; impacted southeast of Crater Copernicus. |
| Luna 12 | U.S.S.R. | Oct. 22, 1966 | A-2-e | Achieved lunar orbit; transmitted lunar pictures and data. |
| Lunar Orbiter 2 | U.S.A. | Nov. 6, 1966 | Atlas-Agena D | After transmitting 422 pictures from orbit, impacted on the Moon. |
| Luna 13 | U.S.S.R. | Dec. 21,1966 | A-2-e | Successful soft landing; transmitted pictures and soil density data. |
| Lunar Orbiter 3 | U.S.A. | Feb. 4, 1967 | Atlas-Agena D | After transmitting 307 pictures from orbit, impacted on the Moon. |
| Surveyor 3 | U.S.A. | Apr. 17,1967 | Atlas-Centaur | Successful soft landing; transmitted 6315 pictures and soils data. |
| Lunar Orbiter 4 | U.S.A. | May 4, 1967 | Atlas-Agena D | Photographed all of near side; after returning 326 pictures from orbit, impacted on the Moon. |
| Surveyor 4 | U.S.A. | July 14,1967 | Atlas-Centaur | Impacted on the Moon; experiments did not function. |
| Explorer 35 | U.S.A. | July 19,1967 | TAD | In lunar orbit; measures Earth's magnetic tail every 29.5 days. |
| Lunar Orbiter 5 | U.S.A. | Aug. 1,1967 | Atlas-Agena D | Last of the highly successful Orbiter missions; impacted on the Moon after completing photographic coverage of far side. |
| Surveyor 5 | U.S.A. | Sept. 8,1967 | Atlas-Centaur | Successful soft landing; transmitted 18 006 pictures and chemical analysis of soil. |
| Surveyor 6 | U.S.A. | Nov. 7, 1967 | Atlas-Centaur | Successful soft landing; transmitted 30 065 pictures and chemical and mechanical soil studies; performed first rocket takeoff on Moon. |
| Surveyor 7 | U.S.A. | Jan. 7, 1968 | Atlas-Centaur | Successful soft landing; transmitted 21 274 pictures and chemical analysis of soil. |
| Zond 4 | U.S.S.R. | Mar. 2, 1968 | D-1-e | Launched into undisclosed trajectory from initial parking orbit probable precursor to manned lunar mission. |
| Apollo 6 | U.S.A. | Apr. 4 ,1968 | Saturn V | Failed to reach Moon. |
| Luna 14 | U.S.S.R. | Apr. 7, 1968 | A-2-e | In lunar orbit; measuring lunar gravity field and Earth-Moon mass relationship. |
| Zond 5 | U.S.S.R. | Sept. 15, 1968 | D-1-e | 1st circumlunar mission after which spacecraft returned to Earth; recovered from Indian Ocean Sept. 21 1968. |
| Zond 6 | U.S.S.R. | Nov. 10, 1968 | D-1-e | 2d unmanned circumlunar mission; spacecraft recovered in U.S.S.R. |
| Apollo 8 | U.S.A. | Dec. 21, 1968 | Saturn V | 1st manned circumlunar flight; 10 orbits completed; first mission in which true photographs taken from lunar orbit were returned to Earth (Astronauts Borman Lovell and Anders). |
| Apollo 10 | U.S.A. | May 18, 1969 | Saturn V | LM detached from the CM and piloted to within 14.9 km of the Moon and returned to the CM; first color TV from space (Astronauts Stafford Young and Cernan). |
| Luna 15 | U.S.S.R. | July 13, 1969 | D-1-e | After completing 52 orbits impacted on Moon. |
| Apollo 11 | U.S.A. | July 16, 1969 | Saturn V | 1st manned lunar landing July 20 1969 western Mare Tranquillitatus; 21.6 hr spent on the Moon; first samples of lunar rocks returned to Earth (Astronauts Armstrong Aldrin and Collins). |
| Zond 7 | U.S.S.R. | Aug. 8,1969 | D-l-e | 3d successful unmanned circumlunar flight; spacecraft recovered in U. S. S. R. |
| Apollo 12 | U.S.A. | Nov. 14,1969 | Saturn V | 2d manned lunar landing Nov. 19, 1969, eastern Oceanus Procellarum; 31.6 hr on the Moon (Astronauts Conrad, Bean, and Gordon). |
| Apollo 13 | U.S.A. | Apr. 11, 1970 | Saturn V | Attempted manned landing mission aborted 56 hr after launch; returned after crossing the far side of the Moon (Astronauts Lovell, Swigert, and Haise). |
| Luna 16 | U.S.S.R. | Sept. 12, 1970 | D-l-e | Unmanned lander arrived in Mare Fecunditatis Sept. 20, 1970; 1st unmanned mission to return lunar samples to Earth. |
| Zond 8 | U.S.S.R. | Sept. 20,1970 | D-1-e | Circled Moon; recovered Oct. 27, 1970. |
| Luna 17 | U.S.S.R. | Nov. 10,1970 | D-l-e | 2d unmanned lander arrived in western Mare Imbrium Nov. 17, 1970; automated roving vehicle Lunokhod I traveled 10.54 km, took more than 20 000 pictures, and conducted experiments during 11 lunar days. |
| Apollo 14 | U.S.A. | Jan. 31, 1971 | Saturn V | 3d successful manned landing Feb. 5, 1971, Fra Mauro site in eastern Oceanus Procellarum (Astronauts Shepard, Mitchell, and Roosa). |
| Apollo 15 | U.S.A. | July 26, 1971 | Saturn V | 4th manned landing July 30, 1971, Apennine-Hadley site in eastern Mare Imbrium; first manned lunar roving vehicle; SIM permitted larger number of scientific experiments and more sophisticated photography to be conducted from orbit. |
| Luna 18 | U.S.S.R. | Sept. 2, 1971 | D-l-e | Impacted on Moon after 54 orbits. |
| Luna 19 | U.S.S.R. | Sept. 28, 1971 | D-l-e | Lunar orbital photographic mission; completed more than 4000 orbits; filmed selected areas; still in orbit. |
| Luna 20 | U.S.S.R. | Feb. 14,1972 | D-l-e | Achieved soft landing Feb. 21, 1972, in northeastern Mare Fecunditatis; returned to Earth Feb. 25, 1972, with lunar samples. |
| Apollo 16 | U.S.A. | Apr. 16,1972 | Saturn V | 5th manned landing, Apr. 21, 1972, Descartes region of Central Highlands (Astronauts Young, Duke, and Mattingly). |
| Apollo 17 | U.S.A. | Dec. 7, 1972 | Saturn V | 6th and last manned lunar landing of the Apollo Program, Taurus-Littrow region; 79 hr on the lunar surface; 113 kg of rock samples returned to Earth (Astronauts Cernan, Schmitt, and Evans). |
| Luna 21 | U.S.S.R. | Jan. 8, 1973 | D-l-e | Achieved successful soft landing in crater Le Monnier; automated roving vehicle Lunokhod 2 traveled 37 km and conducted many experiments during 5 lunar days. |
| Explorer 49 | U.S.A. | June 10, 1973 | Thorad Delta | Radio astronomy from far side of Moon. |
| Luna 22 | U.S.S.R. | May 29, 1974 | D-l-e | Lunar orbital mission; obtained photographs and other data; ran out of attitude control gas Sept. 2, 1975; last communication Nov. 6, 1975. |
| Luna 23 | U.S.S.R. | Oct. 28, 1974 | D-l-e | Achieved successful soft landing on Mare Crisium; sampling prevented by damage to rock drill; conducted restricted research until Nov. 9, 1975. |
| Luna 24 | U.S.S.R. | Aug. 9, 1976 | D-l-e | Achieved successful soft landing in Mare Crisium; complete core sample from depth of 2 m returned to Earth on Aug. 22, 1976. |
a This project was directed by the Advanced Research Projects Agency and launched by the U.S. Air Force. All subsequent U.S. Lunar projects were directed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.