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| Pioneer Z launch cover with Goldey cachet, postmarked at Port Canaveral on December 15, 1960. The mission failed shortly after launch. |
Pioneer P-31, also known as Atlas-Able 5B or Pioneer Z, was designed as a lunar orbiter probe, but the mission failed shortly after launch. Its objectives included placing a highly instrumented probe into lunar orbit, investigating the environment between the Earth and the Moon, and developing technology for controlling and maneuvering spacecraft from Earth. The probe was equipped to capture images of the lunar surface using a television-like system, estimate the Moon's mass and the topography of its poles, record the distribution and velocity of micrometeorites, and study radiation, magnetic fields, and low-frequency electromagnetic waves in space.
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| Photo: Launch of Pioneer Z on December 15, 1960. |
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| Pioneer Z launch cover with "Swanson" stamped cachet, postmarked at Patrick Air Force Base on December 15, 1960. |
(Reference from
Pioneer P-31)
