Science Timeline

Luna 2 was the first space probe to hit the moon.

Made to reconnoiter special Apollo Zone, strip of moon centered at equator. Managed by Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena California (also managed Mariner, Voyager, Surveyor, and Galileo) was supposed to transmit first close-up views of moon's surface showing details as small as 10 feet across

One and two failures; 3, 4 and 5 carried science experiments in addition to cameras. Contained 2 foot diameter spherical instrument package in balsa would ball. 70,000 feet above moon ball would eject and fire retrorockets so package could survive hard landing at just under 150 mph. All failed. 4 crashed into far side; first to reach lunar surface on April 26, 1962

Surveyor had a starring role in the scientific investigation of the Moon. Two versions-orbiter and lander. First would survey broad areas from above. Second would perform detailed studies on surface below.

NASA's budget increased almost 500 percent between 1961 and '64. The Lunar Landing program included 34,000 NASA employees and 375,000 employees of industrial and university contractors.

Project Mercury was the U.S.'s effort to send a man into space; the cone shaped capsule was far lighter than Vostok was. The final test flight in March included chimpanzees

The Soviet Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first person to orbit Earth traveling in Vostok 1.

Alan Shepard was the first American to go into space aboard Mercury. He did not make it into orbit though.

John Glenn was the first American to orbit Earth.

Lunar Orbiter emerged as new project for recon spacecraft. Langley prepared design specs, and Boeing Company won the prime contract to produce the spacecraft. Atlas Agena D chosen as launch vehicle.

High def 70mm photographic film. Dual lens camera offered medium res pics (80mm lens) of broad regions and high res pics (610mm lens) of specific targets. The slow speed of film and high speed over lunar surface was needed to eliminate image blurring. Special V/H Sensor measured Lunar Orbiter's velocity and height then signaled image motion compensation mechanism which advanced film slightly during each exposure

Carried television cameras designed to transmit high res pics of Moon before hit surface at 6000 mph. Failure. Flew to target in Sea of Tranquility, but had electrical short fry cameras.

Agena rocket put craft into orbit around Eath then sent it on course to Moon. July 31, 1964, Ranger 7 started transmitting 4,308 clear pics of moon. Final images 1000 times more detailed than any recorded by Earthbound telescopes. Sea it crashed into named Mare Cognitum (the Known Sea)

Returned 7,137 pictures then crashed into Sea of Tranquility. Many showed Lunar Highlands and twin flat bottomed craters Ritter and Sabine that looked like giant calderas.

Impacted Moon in crater Alphonsus; clearly volcanic origins. 5,814 pics; broadcasted to Earth real time; Live from the Moon appeared first time on home TV

Sergey Korolyev was the chief engineer of the Soviet space program. His role was finally revelaed after he died.

Luna-9 achieved the first 'soft' landing on the Moon; however, had a cosmonaut been on board he would not have survived the crash. Just before the main capsule impacted the moon a probe much like Rangers 3-5 was ejected, which was protected by two balloons. Four metal petals opened up exposing a rotating camera which produced a series of crude panoramas. This stole the thunder from the Surveyor series, and was the first spacecraft on the surface of the Moon (and working)

Launched from the Cape aboard an Atlas-Centaur rocket. The Centaur second stage was powere dby two RL-10 engines (first to operate in space with liquid hydrogen as fuel). Power provuded by solar panel mounted on a mast at the top of the triangular shaped spacecraft. Carried two thermally controlled compartmetns for electronic equipment as well as auxilary storage battery. The Hughes Aircraft Company produced the spacecraft. The target was near the crater Flamsteed and was a smooth area encirlced by hills and low mountains that marked a ghost crater, or an anceitn depression flooded by lava flows in the distant past.

First pictures taken August 18; problem with V/H Sensor. Blurred most of the high res images. returned with 207 medium res images unaffected by faulty sensor showing Apollo Zone targets as well as detailed images of the moons far side. One picture caught worlds imagination; first photo taken of Earth in vicinity of Moon. Showed cloud covered crescent shaped Earth hanging over Barren lunar landscape it offered a preview of more dramatic scenes to come.
Also, deviations noted in its orbit; due to this mass concentrations called mascons of material buried beneath the lunar maria were discovered.

A command sent it into the Moon so the signals would not interfere with Lunar Orbiter 2.

Lunar Orbiter 2 was sent to survey the Apollo Zone again; this time there were no problems with the image motion compensatin mechanism. The spacecraft returned sharp photos of the lunar surface including breathtaking view of crater Copernicus (hailed as Picture of the Century) showed 2,000 foot central peaks and terraced walls with carpathian mountains in the distance all set against jet black lunar sky.

Returned high quality pics of the Apollo Zone; this completed Lunar Orbiter's mapping function. Also photographed Surveyor 1 spacecraft resting on lunar surface. Obtained close ups of meandering tracks left by huge boulders rolling down crater walls.

Goal to photograph entire near side of Moon. Included 163 images with wide angle pictures of the Orientale Basin on the Moon's far side. Huge and multi ringed, this impact basin looked like giant bulls eye. Orientale appeared to be yougest of large circular lunar basins; only partly filled with dark volcanic material. Had four well-preserved mountain rings

Returned 212 photos; combined pics of all 5 missions covered 99% ofmoons surface.

Apollo 8 launched, and was the first manned mission to orbit the moon. Launched from Merritt Island near Cape Canaveral, Florida.

Launch pad explosion hindered Soviet progress.

Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins were launched to the moon. They landed on the 20th, and Armstrong became the first man on the moon.

The government's interest in Space was lacking after the Space Race was won.

Sent 3 U.S. astronauts into space aboard an Apollo spacecraft that docked in orbit with a Soviet made Soyuz vehicle. The commanders of the two crafts officially greeted each other with a handshake.