Missions

Mission 
Launch Date
Accomplishment 
Data
Landing location or orbital parameters
Luna 1
01/02/59
first lunar flyby
   
Luna 2
09/12/59
first lunar impact
 
Flank of crater Autolycus, lat 30oN., long 0o.
Luna 3
10/04/59
first photos of lunar farside
P
Farside and east limb; altitude, 65,000 km.
Ranger 3
01/26/62
missed the Moon by 36,793 km
   
Luna 4
04/02/63
missed the Moon by 8,500 km
   
Ranger 4
04/23/62
crashed on the lunar farside
   
Ranger 5
10/18/62
missed the Moon by 724 km
   
Ranger 6
01/30/64
impact lander; television failed
   
Ranger 7
07/28/64
impact lander
P
Mare Nubium (Cognitum), lat 10.6oS.,long 20.7oW.
Ranger 8
02/17/65
impact lander
P
Mare Tranquillitatis, lat. 2.6oN., long 24.7oE.
Ranger 9
03/21/65
impaact lander
P
Floor of crater Alphonsus, lat 12.9oS., long 2.4oW
Luna 5
05/09/65
crashed on the Moon
   
Luna 6
06/08/65
missed the Moon by 161,000 km
   
Zond 3
07/18/65
photographed lunar farside
P
Farside and west limb; altitude, 9,960 to 11,570 km.
Luna 7
10/04/65
crashed on the Moon
   
Luna 8
12/03/65
crashed on the Moon
   
Luna 9
01/31/66
first lunar soft landing
P
Oceanus Procellarum, lat 7.1oN.,long 65.4oW.
Luna 10
03/31/66
first lunar satellite
SE,CO
Perilune, 350 km.
Suveyor 1
05/30/66
first soft-landing robot laboratory
P,SM
Mare in crater Flamsteed P, lat 2.5oS., long 43.2oW.
Lunar Orbiter 1
08/10/66
lunar satellite
P,R,SE,M
Inclination, 12o,perilunes, 190 and 40 km.
Luna 11
08/24/66
lunar satellite
P
Perilune, 165 km.
Luna 12
10/22/66
lunar satellite
P,M,SE
Perilune, 100 km.
Lunar Orbiter 2
11/06/66
lunar satellite
P,R,SE,M
Inclination, 12o; perilune, 50 km.
Luna 13
12/21/66
soft landing on the Moon
P,C
Oceanus Procellarum, lat 18.9oN., long 62.1oW.
Lunar Orbiter 3
02/05/67
lunar satellite
P,R,SE,M
Inclination, 21o; perilune, 55 km.
Surveyor 3
04/17/67
soft-landing robot laboratory
P,SM
Oceanus Procellarun, lat 3.2oS., long 23.4oW.
Lunar Orbiter 4
05/04/67
lunar satellite
P,R,SE,M
Inclination, 85o; periline, 2,705 km.
Explorer 35
07/19/67
lunar satellite
 
Perilune, 830 km (returned data until Feb. 1972)
Lunar Orbiter 5
08/01/67
lunar satellite
P,R,SE,M
Inclination, 85o; perilunes, 195 and 100 km.
Surveyor 5
09/08/67
soft-landed robot laboratory
P,SM,C
Mare Tranquillitatis, lat 1.4oN., long 23.1oE.
Surveyor 6
11/07/67
soft-landed robot laboratory
P,SM,C
Sinus Medi, lat 0.5oN., long 1.5oW.
Surveyor 7
01/07/68
soft-landed robot laboratory
P,SM,C
Flank of crater Tycho, lat 40.9oS., long 11.5oW.
Luna 14 
04/07/68
lunar satellite
   
Zond 5
09/14/68
first lunar flyby and Earth return
   
Zond 6
11/10/68
lunar flyby and Earth return
P
Altitude >3,300 km.
Apollo 8 (G)+
12/21/68
first humans to orbit the Moon
P
Perilune 110 km.
Apollo 10 (G)+
05/18/69
first docking maneuvers in lunar orbit
P
Best perilune, 15 km.
Luna 15
07/13/69
crashed on the Moon
   
Apollo 11 (H)+
07/16/69
first humans on the Moon (07/20/69)
P,S,SM,G,M,SW,D
Mare Tranquillitatis, lat 0.7oN., 23.4oE.
Zond 7
08/08/69
lunar flyby and Earth return
P
Southern farside and west limb; perilune, 2,200 km ?
Apollo 12 (H)+
11/14/69
second human landing on the Moon
P,S,SM,G,M,SW,D,A
Oceanus Procellarum, lat 3.2oS.,long 23.4oW
Apollo 13 (H)+
04/11/70
aborted human landing
P
Southern farside and west limb.
Luna 16
09/12/70
first robot sample return (100 g)
S
Mare Fecunditatis, lat 0.7oS., long 56.3oE.
Zond 8
10/20/70
lunar flyby and Earth return
P
Altitude > 1,120 km.
Luna 17
11/10/70
first robot rover (322 days, 10.5 km)
P,C,SM,R
Sinus Iridum, lat 38.3oN., long 35.0oW.
Apollo 14 (H)+
01/31/71
third human landing on the Moon
P,S,SM,G,SW,D,A
Fra Mauro highlands, lat 3.7oS., long 17.5oW.
Apollo 15 (J)+
07/26/71
fourth human landing on the Moon
P,S,C,SM,R,G,CO,SE,SW,D,A
Apennine-Hadley region, lat 26.1oN., long 3.7oE.
Luna 18
09/02/71
crashed on the Moon
   
Luna 19
09/28/71
lunar satellite
P,SE
Best perilune, 77 km (?)
Luna 20
02/14/72
second robot sample return (30 g)
P,S
Crisium-basin rim. lat 3.5oN., long 56.5oE.
Apollo 16 (J)+
04/16/72
fifth human landing on the Moon
P,S,C,SM,R,G,CO,SE,A
Descartes highlands, lat 9.0oS., long 15.5oE.
Apollo 17 (J)+
12/07/72
sixth human landing on the Moon
P,S,SM,R,G,SE,M
Taurus-Littrow Valley, lat 20.2oN., long 30.8oE.
Luna 21
01/08/73
robot lunar rover (139 days, 37 km)
P,C,SM,R
Mare in crater Le Monnier, lat 25.8oN., long 30.5oE.
Luna 22
05/29/74/
lunar satellite
P
 
Luna 23
10/28/74
failed robot sampler
   
Luna 24
08/09/76
third robot sample return (170 g)
S
Mare Crisium, lat 12.7oN., long 62.2oE.
Galileo
10/18/89
lunar flyby
   
Hiten (Muses A)
01/24/90
     
Clementine
01/25/94
lunar satellite
   
Cassini
10/15/97 
lunar flyby
   
Lunar Prospector
01/07/98
lunar satellite
   
   Abbreviations as follows: A = atmosphere and ion studies; C = surface chemistry; CO = chemical mapping from orbit; D = dust analysis; G = surface-based geophysics; M = meteoroid studies; P = photography; R = radiation environment studies; S = samples returned to Earth; SE = selenodesy measurements; SM = soil mechanics studies; SW = solar wind studies.
   +The Apollo manned missions fall into three major categories with the following letter designations: G (lunar orbit without lunar landing); H (lunar landing with limited mobility); and J (lunar landing with Lunar Roving Vehicle).  The H missions (30 metric tons) were three times as heavy as the Apollo 8 and Apollo 10 G missions (10 metric tons); the J missions (50-60 metric tons) were twice as heavy as the H missons.

   Chart consolidated from, Lunar Source Book and  The Geologic History of  the Moon.