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Soviet Union: Luna 9
The 1,580-kilogram (3,483-pound) Luna 9 (E-6 series, or Lunik 9) spacecraft was launched from Earth on January 31, 1966 at 11:45 UTC by a Molniya 8K78M launch vehicle. It was later launched toward the Moon by the 4-Stage R-7/SS-6 rocket.
At 18:44:52 UTC (2144 Moscow time), Luna 9 became the first spacecraft constructed by humans to safely soft land on another celestial body.
The success of this unmanned mission gave confidence to both Soviet and American space pioneers to take further unmanned trips to the Moon and eventually to accomplish manned missions to the Moon
After landing on the Moon’s Oceanus Procellarium, the small space traveler (which was even smaller after parts were separated before landing) was only 113-kilogram (250-pound) in weight (as on Earth).
The capsule (or, automatic lunar station) then opened up four petals that stabilized the probe and, thus, allowed the probe’s instruments to function on the Moon.
In fact, the opened capsule allowed its television camera to take panoramic views of the lunar landscape. The capsule also contained moveable antennas, radio equipment, and a rotating mirror system.
In all, seven radio sessions, which totaled eight hours, five minutes, were transmitted as were three series of television pictures. Transmissions with Luna 9 ended on February 6, 1966 when its batteries were exhausted.
To read the article that people read back on February 3, 1966, go to the BBC website On This Day for the article “1966: Soviets land probe on Moon.”
To learn more about Luna-9, visit the NASA website Solar System Exploration and the article “Luna 9.”
Page two talks about the weather satellite ESSA-1 launched by the United States on this same day in 1966.
