Luna 1 but it was a second or two before we realised what we had". The picture shows the lights of Edinburgh in the foreground. The rocket is seen as an illuminated cloud top centre." "Luna 1" was meant to crash on the Moon; however, due to a malfunction of the ground control system, the probe missed its target by 5,995 kilometers. Despite this, "Luna 1" still managed to collect vital information to assist in the understanding of the universe. Its goal to crash on the Moon was subsequently achieved by Luna 2 on September 13, 1959. Luna 1 Luna 1, also
Luna 1 first instance of radio communication at the half-million-kilometer distance. A malfunction in the ground-based control system caused an error in the rocket's burntime, and the spacecraft missed the target and flew by the Moon at a distance of 5,900 km at the closest point. "Luna 1" then became the first man-made object to reach heliocentric orbit and was then dubbed a "new planet" and renamed "Mechta" ("Dream"). "Luna 1" was also referred to as the "First Cosmic Rocket", in reference to its achievement of escape velocity. "Luna 1" contained radio equipment including a tracking transmitter and telemetry system, and five