Moon

:For other moons in the solar system see natural satellite. For the astrological meaning of the Moon, see Solar system in astrology. For other uses see Moon (disambiguation).

Exploration of the Moon

The first leap in Lunar observation was caused by the invention of the telescope. Especially Galileo Galilei made good use of this new instrument and observed mountains and craters on the Moon's surface.

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The first man-made object to reach the Moon was the unmanned Soviet probe Luna 2, which made a hard landing on September 14, 1959, at 21:02:24 Z. The second leap in Lunar observation came when the until then unseen far side of the Moon was first photographed on October 7, 1959 by the Soviet probe Luna 3. Luna 9 was the first probe to soft land on the Moon and transmit pictures from the Lunar surface on February 3, 1966. These last photos weren't very good, but more important was that it was proven that a lunar lander would not sink into a thick layer of dust, as had been feared. The first artificial satellite of the Moon was the Soviet probe Luna 10 (launched March 31, 1966). The first robot lunar rover to land on the Moon was the Soviet vessel Lunokhod 1 on November 17 1970 as part of the Lunokhod program.

Related Topics:
Soviet - Luna 2 - September 14 - 1959 - Far side - October 7 - Luna 3 - Luna 9 - February 3 - 1966 - Luna 10 - March 31 - Lunar rover - Lunokhod 1 - November 17 - 1970 - Lunokhod program

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On December 24, 1968 the crew of Apollo 8, Frank Borman, James Lovell, and William Anders became the first human beings to see the far side of the Moon with their own eyes (as opposed to seeing it on a photograph). Humans first landed on the Moon on July 20, 1969 as the culmination of a Cold War-inspired space race between the Soviet Union and the United States of America. The first man to walk on the lunar surface was Neil Armstrong, commander of the American mission Apollo 11. The last man to stand on the Moon was Eugene Cernan, who as part of the mission Apollo 17 walked on the Moon in December 1972. See also: A full list of lunar astronauts.

Related Topics:
Apollo 8 - Frank Borman - James Lovell - William Anders - July 20 - 1969 - Cold War - Space race - Soviet Union - United States of America - Neil Armstrong - Apollo 11 - Eugene Cernan - Apollo 17 - 1972 - A full list of lunar astronauts

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The Apollo 11 crew left a 9 by 7 inch (23 by 18 cm) stainless steel plaque on the Moon, to commemorate the landing and provide basic information of the visit to any other beings who may eventually see it. The plaque reads Here men from the Planet Earth first set foot upon the Moon, July 1969, A.D. We came in peace for all mankind. The plaque depicts two hemispheres of planet Earth, and is signed by the three astronauts, as well as US President Richard Nixon.

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Moon samples have been brought back to Earth by three Luna missions (nrs. 16, 20, and 24) and the Apollo missions 11 through 17 (minus Apollo 13, which almost ended in a disaster).

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On January 14 2004, US President George W. Bush called for a plan to return manned missions to the Moon by 2020. NASA's plan to accomplish that goal was announced on 19 March 2005, and was promptly dubbed Apollo 2.0 by critics.

Related Topics:
January 14 - 2004 - President - George W. Bush - 2020 - NASA - 19 March - 2005 - Apollo

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The European Space Agency and People's Republic of China both have plans to launch probes to explore the Moon in the near future, too. European spacecraft Smart 1 was launched September 27, 2003 and entered lunar orbit on November 15, 2004 . It will survey the lunar environment and create an X-ray map of the Moon. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/2818551.stm

Related Topics:
European Space Agency - People's Republic of China - Smart 1 - September 27 - 2003 - Orbit - November 15 - 2004 - X-ray

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http://sci.esa.int/science-e/www/object/index.cfm?fobjectid=36091

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China has expressed ambitious plans for exploring the Moon and is investigating the prospect of lunar mining, specifically looking for the isotope Helium-3 for use as an energy source on Earth http://space.com/missionlaunches/china_moon_030304.html. Japan has two planned lunar missions, LUNAR-A and Selene; even a manned lunar base is planned by the Japanese Space Agency (JAXA). India will also try an unmanned orbiting satellite, called Chandrayan.

Related Topics:
Plans - Isotope - Helium-3 - Japan - LUNAR-A - Selene - JAXA - Chandrayan

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From the mid-1960's to the mid-1970's there were 65 moon landings (with 10 in 1971 alone), but after Luna 24 in 1976 it suddenly stopped. The Soviet Union started focusing on Venus and space stations and the US on Mars and beyond. In 1990 the Moon was visited again, this time by a third nation, Japan, with the Hagoromo, which, however, was not a scientific success.

Related Topics:
Luna 24 - Venus - Space station - Mars - 1990 - Japan - Hagoromo

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For escaping at the surface of the Moon from the Moon and the Earth, the escape velocity is the square root of the sum of the squares of the separate escape velocities of 2.4 and 1.5 km/s, or 2.8 km/s. Thus, using the orbital speed of 1.1 km/s, a delta-v of 2.4 km/s, just enough for escaping the Moon, is more than enough to escape Earth as well.

Related Topics:
Orbital speed - Delta-v

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