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| A Luna 14 lunar orbit cover, postmarked in Tartu with a hand cancel on April 10, 1968. |
Luna 14 was a Soviet unmanned lunar-orbiter mission launched on April 7, 1968, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. It was part of the E-6LS series, an improved version of the spacecraft used for the earlier Luna lunar missions. Unlike Luna 13, which was a lander, Luna 14 was designed to operate from lunar orbit. The spacecraft carried scientific instruments for studying the lunar environment and near-Moon space, including measurements of charged particles, cosmic radiation and solar-particle activity. It also investigated the Moon's gravitational environment and helped improve knowledge needed for accurately navigating spacecraft around the Moon.
Luna 14 entered lunar orbit on April 10, 1968, at 19:25 UT. Its orbit had an inclination of about 42°, with the spacecraft operating at several thousand kilometres above the lunar surface. It remained operational for approximately 75 days, with the last contact reported on June 24, 1968. Unlike earlier Soviet orbiters such as Luna 12, Luna 14 did not carry photographic equipment intended to produce lunar surface imagery. Its principal importance was therefore technological and scientific rather than photographic.
