Chronology of Lunar and Planetary Exploration (1965 - 1969)

Mission Timeline


| 1957 - 1964
| 1965
|-- Ranger 8 - 17 February 1965 - Lunar Impact
|-- Cosmos 60 - 12 March 1965 - Attempted Lunar Lander
|-- Ranger 9 - 21 March 1965 - Lunar Impact
|-- Luna 1965A - 10 April 1965 - Attempted Lunar Lander? (Launch Failure)
|-- Luna 5 - 9 May 1965 - Lunar Impact (Attempted Soft Landing)
|-- Luna 6 - 8 June 1965 - Attempted Lunar Lander
|-- Zond 3 - 18 July 1965 - Lunar Flyby
|-- Luna 7 - 4 October 1965 - Lunar Impact (Attempted Soft Landing)
|-- Venera 2 - 12 November 1965 - Venus Flyby (Contact Lost)
|-- Venera 3 - 16 November 1965 - Venus Lander (Contact Lost)
|-- Cosmos 96 - 23 November 1965 - Attempted Venus Lander?
|-- Venera 1965A - 23 November 1965 - Attempted Venus Flyby (Launch Failure)
|-- Luna 8 - 3 December 1965 - Lunar Impact (Attempted Soft Landing?)
| 1966
|-- Luna 9 - 31 January 1966 - Lunar Lander
|-- Cosmos 111 - 1 March 1966 - Attempted Lunar Orbiter?
|-- Luna 10 - 31 March 1966 - Lunar Orbiter
|-- Luna 1966A - 30 April 1966 - Attempted Lunar Orbiter? (Launch Failure)
|-- Surveyor 1 - 30 May 1966 - Lunar Lander
|-- Explorer 33 - 1 July 1966 - Attempted Lunar Orbiter
|-- Lunar Orbiter 1 - 10 August 1966 - Lunar Orbiter
|-- Luna 11 - 24 August 1966 - Lunar Orbiter
|-- Surveyor 2 - 20 September 1966 - Attempted Lunar Lander
|-- Luna 12 - 22 October 1966 - Lunar Orbiter
|-- Lunar Orbiter 2 - 6 November 1966 - Lunar Orbiter
|-- Luna 13 - 21 December 1966 - Lunar Lander
| 1967
|-- Lunar Orbiter 3 - 4 February 1967 - Lunar Orbiter
|-- Surveyor 3 - 17 April 1967 - Lunar Lander
|-- Lunar Orbiter 4 - 8 May 1967 - Lunar Orbiter
|-- Venera 4 - 12 June 1967 - Venus Probe
|-- Mariner 5 - 14 June 1967 - Venus Flyby
|-- Cosmos 167 - 17 June 1967 - Attempted Venus Probe
|-- Surveyor 4 - 14 July 1967 - Attempted Lunar Lander
|-- Explorer 35 (IMP-E) - 19 July 1967 - Lunar Orbiter
|-- Lunar Orbiter 5 - 1 August 1967 - Lunar Orbiter
|-- Surveyor 5 - 8 September 1967 - Lunar Lander
|-- Zond 1967A - 28 September 1967 - Attempted Lunar Test Flight (Launch Failure)
|-- Surveyor 6 - 7 November 1967 - Lunar Lander
|-- Zond 1967B - 22 November 1967 - Attempted Lunar Test Flight (Launch Failure)
| 1968
|-- Surveyor 7 - 7 January 1968 - Lunar Lander
|-- Luna 1968A - 7 February 1968 - Attempted Lunar Orbiter (Launch Failure)
|-- Zond 4 - 2 March 1968 - Test Flight
|-- Luna 14 - 7 April 1968 - Lunar Orbiter
|-- Zond 1968A - 23 April 1968 - Attempted Lunar Test Flight? (Launch Failure)
|-- Zond 5 - 15 September 1968 - Lunar Flyby and Return to Earth
|-- Zond 6 - 10 November 1968 - Lunar Flyby and Return to Earth
|-- Apollo 8 - 21 December 1968 - Crewed Lunar Orbiter
| 1969
|-- Venera 5 - 5 January 1969 - Venus Probe
|-- Venera 6 - 10 January 1969 - Venus Probe
|-- Zond 1969A - 20 January 1969 - Attempted Lunar Flyby and Return (Launch Failure)
|-- Luna 1969A - 19 February 1969 - Attempted Lunar Rover? (Launch Failure)
|-- Zond L1S-1 - 21 February 1969 - Attempted Lunar Orbiter (Launch Failure)
|-- Mariner 6 - 25 February 1969 - Mars Flyby
|-- Mariner 7 - 27 March 1969 - Mars Flyby
|-- Mars 1969A - 27 March 1969 - Attempted Mars Orbiter (Launch Failure)
|-- Mars 1969B - 2 April 1969 - Attempted Mars Orbiter (Launch Failure)
|-- Luna 1969B - 15 April 1969 - Attempted Lunar Sample Return? (Launch Failure)
|-- Apollo 10 - 18 May 1969 - Crewed Lunar Orbiter
|-- Luna 1969C - 14 June 1969 - Attempted Lunar Sample Return? (Launch Failure)
|-- Zond L1S-2 - 3 July 1969 - Attempted Lunar Orbiter (Launch Failure)
|-- Luna 15 - 13 July 1969 - Lunar Orbiter (Attempted Lunar Lander?)
|-- Apollo 11 - 16 July 1969 - Crewed Lunar Landing
|-- Zond 7 - 7 August 1969 - Lunar Flyby and Return to Earth
|-- Cosmos 300 - 23 September 1969 - Attempted Lunar Sample Return?
|-- Cosmos 305 - 22 October 1969 - Attempted Lunar Sample Return?
|-- Apollo 12 - 14 November 1969 - Crewed Lunar Landing
| 1970 - 1979
| 1980 - Present
| Future Missions

Other Missions

If you don't see a mission listed here, you may wish to query the NSSDC Master Catalog by typing in a name in the space below.

Spacecraft Name:

[NASA Logo]
Author/Curator:
Dr. David R. Williams, dave.williams@nasa.gov
NSSDC, Mail Code 690.1
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, MD 20771
+1-301-286-1258

NASA Official: Ed Grayzeck, edwin.j.grayzeck@nasa.gov
Last Updated: 20 November 2007, DRW