Ranger 7 was the first successful American lunar probe. It
was designed to return visual images of the lunar surface before impacting. It
was launched on July 28th,
1964. It returned 4,308 photographs of excellent quality occurred
over the final 17 minutes of flight. It impacted the Moon on July 31st
in an area between Mare Nubium and Oceanus Procellarum (subsequently named Mare
Cognitum.)
Ranger 8
Ranger 8 was launched on February 17th, 1965 and reached the Moon on February 20th, 1965. It
returned 7,137 photographs of good quality over the final 23 minutes of flight.
It impacted in Mare Tranquillitatis (Sea
of Tranquility.)
Ranger 9
Ranger 9 was launched on March 21st, 1965. It returned 5,814
photographs during the final 19 minutes of flight. Ranger 9 impacted the Moon
in the crater Alphonsus on March 24th.
Zond 3
Zond 3 was launched on July 18th, 1965 and flew by the Moon on July 20th
at a distance of 9200 kilometers. The Soviet probe returned twenty five images
of the lunar far side before proceeding into interplanetary space.
Luna 9
Luna 9 launched on January
31st, 1966 and the Soviet probe became the first vehicle
to soft land on the lunar surface in the Ocean
of Storms on February 3rd.
Luna 9 sent back images of a panoramic view of the landing site, including
nearby rocks and the horizon.
Luna 10
Luna 10 was launched on March 31st, 1966 and entered lunar orbit on
April 3rd. Instruments acquired data of infrared emissions from the
Moon and radiation conditions of the lunar environment, as well as conducting
gravitational studies.