1950s-70s Space Race to The Moon: 1966-01-31 USSR Luna 9

Launched on January 31, 1966, Luna 9 became the first spacecraft to achieve a controlled landing on the surface of another celestial body on February 3, 1966.

Luna 9 was an uncrewed space mission from the Soviet Union's Luna program, launched at 11:41:37 GMT on January 31, 1966. On February 3, 1966, Luna 9 became the first spacecraft to make a successful landing on a celestial body. The lander, weighing 99 kilograms (218 lbs), was a spheroid ALS capsule measuring 58 centimeters (23 inches) in diameter. It was equipped with a landing bag to absorb the impact at a speed of 22 kilometers per hour (14 mph). The hermetically sealed unit housed radio equipment, a program timing device, heat control systems, scientific instruments, power sources, and a television system.

Photo: The landing site of the Luna 9 spacecraft.

The spacecraft was developed by the design bureau then known as OKB-1, under Chief Designer Sergei Korolev, who had passed away prior to the launch. The first 11 Luna missions faced failures for various reasons. Eventually, the project was handed over to the Lavochkin design bureau, as OKB-1 was occupied with plans for a human expedition to the Moon. Luna 9 marked the Soviet Union's twelfth attempt at a soft landing and became the first successful deep-space probe constructed by the Lavochkin bureau, which later went on to design and build nearly all Soviet (and later Russian) lunar and interplanetary spacecraft.

Luna 9 transmitted photographs of the lunar surface across 250,000 miles (400,000 km) of space, providing humanity with a close-up view of the Moon's structure. Even objects just a few inches in size were visible. Additionally, the spacecraft conducted experiments to confirm that the lunar surface had enough bearing strength to support a large spacecraft, disproving some astronomers' predictions that it would sink into layers of dust. Communication with Luna 9 ceased on February 5, 1966.