Ranger Satellites
Ranger spacecraft were the first satellites to give American scientists a close look at the Moon's surface. Only three of the nine Ranger satellites successfully completed their mission to the moon, but the three that did provided scientists details about the Moon's surface that could not be seen through telescopes on Earth. Ranger satellites were made to reach the Moon and then purposefully crash into it, taking pictures the whole time.
Ranger spacecraft took pictures all the way up to their crash landing. This video shows the impact of Ranger 9 into the lunar surface, from the satellite's point of view.
Ranger Satellite
Photo Credit: NASM
Ranger Satellite
Photo Credit: NASA
When was the first Ranger spacecraft launched?
Nine Rangers were launched between 1961 and 1965. The first six Rangers failed to reach the Moon and take pictures, but beginning in July 1964 Rangers 7, 8, and 9 successfully reached the Moon and returned images back to the Earth. Ranger 9, the last to be launched, finished its mission in March 1965.
What was the Ranger program's mission?
The mission of the Ranger program was to take photographs of the Moon in order to start the mapping process necessary to land a spacecraft there safely. In addition to scouting for landing sites, Ranger satellites gathered new information about the Moon that scientists could not learn from Earth.
What did we learn from the Ranger missions?
Ranger satellites were the very first American craft to take a picture of the Moon! Rangers 7, 8, and 9 sent back more than 17,000 pictures of the Moon's surface to Earth. These images were the first step in identifying a safe landing zone for sending astronauts to the Moon. The pictures Ranger 9 took as it descended were broadcast live on TV, giving people at home the chance to see what a lunar landing might look like.
First Picture of the Moon by a US Space Craft
On July 31st, Ranger 7 reached the Moon and during its 17 minute descent before impact sent back 4,316 images of the lunar surface. This picture is the very first one it took, showing scientists an important first look at the Moon's craters.
Photo credit: NASA
How do these images help us learn about the Moon?
These photos allowed scientists to make highly detailed maps of the Moon's surface and create three-dimensional representations of the lunar surface for the first time.
What do these images tell us about the Moon's terrain?
These pictures showed craters as small as three feet and diameter and evidence of past volcanic activity for the first time - information that was impossible to find out from Earth! They helped scientists pick out a landing spot for the Apollo missions, but also helped form theories about what the lunar surface was like and how it was affected by the Moon's environment and atmosphere.