View source for Luna 1

{{short description|Soviet spacecraft}}
{{DISPLAYTITLE:''Luna 1''}}
{{use dmy dates|date=May 2020}}
{{Infobox spaceflight
| name                  = ''Luna 1''
| image                 = RIAN archive 510848 Interplanetary station Luna 1 - blacked.jpg
| image_caption         = A museum replica

| mission_type          = Lunar impactor{{sfn|Siddiqi|2018|p=11}}
| operator              = Soviet space program
| Harvard_designation   = 1959 Mu 1
| COSPAR_ID             = 1959-012A<ref name=nssdc/>
| SATCAT                = 00112<ref name=nssdc/>
| mission_duration      = Approximately 62 hours{{sfn|Siddiqi|2018|p=11}}

| spacecraft_type       = Ye-1
| manufacturer          = [[OKB-1]]
| dry_mass              = 
| launch_mass           = {{convert|361.3|kg}}{{sfn|Siddiqi|2018|p=11}}
| dimensions            = 
| power                 =

| launch_date           = {{start-date|2 January 1959, 16:41:21|timezone=yes}}&nbsp;[[UTC]]{{sfn|Siddiqi|2018|p=11}}
| launch_rocket         = [[Luna (rocket)|Luna]] 8K72 
| launch_site           = [[Baikonur Cosmodrome|Baikonur]], [[Baikonur Cosmodrome Site 1|Site 1/5]]
| launch_contractor     = 
| last_contact          = 5 January 1959

| orbit_epoch           = 1 January 1959, 19:00:00&nbsp;GMT<ref name="NSSDCTrajectory">{{Cite web|url=https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraft/displayTrajectory.action?id=1959-012A|title=Luna 1 Launch and Trajectory Information|website=NASA Space Science Data Coordinated Archive|access-date=2018-05-02}}</ref>
| orbit_reference       = [[Heliocentric orbit|Heliocentric]]
| orbit_periapsis       = 0.9766&nbsp;AU
| orbit_apoapsis        = 1.315&nbsp;AU
| orbit_inclination     = 0.01°
| orbit_semimajor       = 1.146&nbsp;AU
| orbit_eccentricity    = 0.14767
| orbit_period          = 450&nbsp;days
| apsis                 = helion

| programme             = '''[[Luna programme]]'''
| previous_mission      = ''[[Luna E-1 No.3|Luna 1958C]]''
| next_mission          = ''[[Luna E-1A No.1|Luna 1959A]]''
|interplanetary         = 
 {{Infobox spaceflight/IP
   |type                = impactor_flyby
   |object              = [[Moon|Lunar]]
   |arrival_date        = 4 January 1959
   |distance            = {{convert|5995|km}}
 }}
}}

'''''Luna 1''''', also known as '''''Mechta''''' ({{langx|ru|Мечта}} {{IPA|ru|mʲɪt͡ɕˈta|}}, ''[[Literal translation|lit.]]'': ''Dream''), '''''E-1 No.4''''' and ''First Lunar Rover'',{{sfn|Harvey|2007a|p=26}}  was the first [[spacecraft]] to reach the vicinity of Earth's [[Moon]], the first spacecraft to leave Earth's orbit, and the first to be placed in [[heliocentric orbit]]. Intended as a Moon impactor, ''Luna 1'' was launched as part of the [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] [[Luna programme]] in 1959.

A malfunction in the ground-based control system caused an error in the upper stage rocket's burn time, and the spacecraft missed the Moon by 5,900&nbsp;km (more than three times the Moon's radius). ''Luna 1'' became the first human-made object to reach [[heliocentric orbit]] and was dubbed "Artificial Planet 1"<ref name="nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov">{{cite web |title=Spacecraft - Details |url=https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraft/display.action?id=1959-012A |website=nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov |publisher=[[NASA]] |access-date=2 January 2024 |language=en}}</ref> and renamed ''Mechta'' (''Dream'').{{sfn|Cormack|2012|p=342}} ''Luna 1'' was also referred to as the "First Cosmic Ship",<ref name="nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov"/> in reference to its achievement of Earth [[escape velocity]].

==Spacecraft==

The satellite and rocket carrying ''Luna 1'' was originally referred to as the Soviet Space Rocket by the Soviet Press.{{sfn|Siddiqi|2018|p=11}} Pravda writer [[Alexander Kazantsev]] called it ''Mechta'' ({{langx|ru|Мечта}}, meaning 'dream').<ref name=alkaz>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/38762024/the_plain_speaker/|title=New Soviet Rocket Given Name 'Mechta'|newspaper=The Plain Speaker |agency=Associated Press|date=5 January 1959|page=1|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref>{{sfn|Darling|2003|p=244}} Citizens of Moscow unofficially deemed it ''Lunik'', a combination of Luna (Moon) and [[Sputnik]].<ref name=alkaz/> It was renamed to ''Luna 1'' in 1963.{{sfn|Siddiqi|2018|p=11}}

The spherical satellite was powered by [[mercury battery|mercury-oxide batteries]] and [[silver zinc battery|silver-zinc accumulators]].<ref name=nssdc/> There were five antenna on one hemisphere, four whip-style and one rigid, for communication purposes. The spacecraft also contained [[radio equipment]] including a [[tracking transmitter]] and [[telemetry]] system.<ref name=nssdc/> There was no propulsion system.<ref name=nssdc/>

''Luna 1'' was designed to impact the Moon, delivering two metallic pennants with the [[Soviet coat of arms]] that were included into its payload package.<ref name=nssdc/> It also had six instruments to study the Moon upon its suicidal approach. The flux-gate [[magnetometer]] was triaxial and could measure ± 3000 [[Tesla_(unit)#Conversion_to_non-SI_units|gammas]]. It was designed to detect lunar magnetic fields.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/experiment/display.action?id=1959-012A-01 |title=Triaxial Fluxgate Magnetometer |date=28 October 2022 |website=NASA NSSDCA |access-date=2 January 2024}}</ref>{{sfn|Harvey|2007b|p=26}} Two micrometeorite detectors, developed by Tatiana Nazarova of the Vernadsky Institute, were installed on the spacecraft. They each consisted of a metal plate with springs and could detect small impacts.{{sfn|Harvey|2007b|p=26}} Four ion traps, used to measure solar wind and plasma, were included. They were developed by Konstantin Gringauz.{{sfn|Harvey|2007b|p=26}} The scientific payload also included two gas-discharge [[Geiger counter]]s, a sodium-iodide [[scintillation counter]], and a [[Cherenkov detector]]. The upper stage of the rocket contained a scintillation counter and {{convert|1|kg|lb}} of sodium for a gas-dispersion experiment.<ref name=nssdc/>{{sfn|Siddiqi|2018|p=11}}

The spacecraft weighed {{convert|361.3|kg|lb}} at launch.{{sfn|Siddiqi|2018|p=11}}  It was about {{convert|1.22|m|ft}} in diameter.<ref name="Smithsonian">{{cite web |url=https://smithsonianmag.com/air-space-magazine/the-luna-1-hoax-hoax-133487/|title=The Luna 1 Hoax Hoax|last=Reichhardt |first=Tony |date=January 2, 2013 |publisher=Smithsonian Magazine}}</ref>

==Launch==
[[File:1959 CPA 2306.jpg|thumb|Route of Luna 1 on a Soviet stamp]]
''Luna 1'' was launched at 16:41 GMT (22:41 [[UTC+6|local time]]) on 2 January 1959 from [[Baikonur Cosmodrome Site 1|Site 1/5]] at the [[Baikonur Cosmodrome]] by a [[Luna 8K72]] rocket.{{sfn|Siddiqi|2018|p=11}} The first three stages operated nominally. The Soviet engineers did not trust automated systems for controlling the engine burns, so they communicated to the rocket via radio. The signal to stop firing the engine Block E stage was delayed,{{sfn|Reichl|2019|p=20}} and the prolonged burn imparted an extra 175&nbsp;m/s to ''Luna 1''.{{sfn|Siddiqi|2018|p=11}} 

Consequently ''Luna 1'' missed its target by {{convert|5995|km|mi|sp=us}}. The spacecraft passed within {{convert|5995|-|6400|km|sp=us}} of the Moon's surface on 4 January after 34 hours of flight, and then became the first human made object to leave Earth's orbit on January 6, 1959.<ref name=nssdc />{{sfn|Siddiqi|2018|p=11}} ''Luna 1'' ran out of battery power on 5 January, when it was {{convert|597000|km|sp=us}} from Earth, making it impossible to track further.{{sfn|Siddiqi|2018|p=11}}{{sfn|Reichl|2019|p=21}} The batteries were designed for a minimum of 40 hours but lasted for 62.{{sfn|Reichl|2019|p=21}}

''Luna 1'' became the first artificial object to reach the [[escape velocity]] of the Earth,{{sfn|Siddiqi|2018|p=1}} along with its carrier rocket's {{convert|1472|kg|adj=on}}<ref name=nssdc/> upper stage, which it separated from after being the first spacecraft to reach [[heliocentric orbit]].{{sfn|Siddiqi|2018|p=11}} It remains in orbit around the Sun, between the orbits of Earth and Mars.<ref name=nssdc>{{cite web|url=https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraft/display.action?id=1959-012A|title=Luna 1|website=NASA Space Science Data Coordinated Archive}}</ref>

==Experiment results==
{{external media
| float = right
| width  = 200px
| image1 = [http://mentallandscape.com/L_Sodium2.jpg Image of sodium cloud]<ref name="o999">{{cite web | last=Mitchell | first=Don P. | title=Lunar Impact | website=Don P. Mitchell | date=1959-01-02 | url=http://mentallandscape.com/L_Luna2.htm | access-date=2024-07-17}}</ref>{{Image requested inline |date=July 2024}}
}}

At 00:57 GMT on 3 January 1959, at a distance of {{convert|113000|km}} from Earth,{{sfn|Siddiqi|2018|p=11}} {{convert|1|kg}} of [[sodium]] gas was released by the spacecraft, forming a cloud behind it to serve as an artificial [[comet]]. The cloud was released for two purposes: to allow visual tracking of the spacecraft's trajectory<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/38763128/st_louis_postdispatch/|title=Soviet Moon Rocket Releases Sodium Cloud as 'Tail Light'|newspaper=St. Louis Post Dispatch|location=St. Louis, Missouri|date=3 January 1959|page=2|agency=Associated Press|last1=Carey|first1=Frank E.|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> and to observe the behavior of gas in space.<ref name=nssdc/> This glowing orange trail of gas, visible over the [[Indian Ocean]] with the brightness of a sixth-magnitude star for a few minutes, was photographed by Mstislav Gnevyshev at the Mountain Station of the Main Astronomical Observatory of the [[Academy of Sciences of the USSR]] near [[Kislovodsk]].<ref name="BSE59"/>

While traveling through the outer [[Van Allen radiation belt]], the spacecraft's [[scintillator]] made observations indicating that a small number of high-energy [[Subatomic particle|particle]]s exist in the outer belt. The measurements obtained during this mission provided new data on the Earth's radiation belt and [[outer space]]. The craft was unable to detect a lunar [[magnetic field]] which placed an upper limit on its strength of 1/10,000th of Earth's.<ref name=nssdc/><ref name=Huntress235>{{cite book|last1=Huntress Jr|first1=Wesley T.|last2=Marov|first2=Mikhail Ya|date=2011|title=Soviet Robots in the Solar System Mission Technologies and Discoveries|url=https://archive.org/details/sovietrobotssola00jrwe|url-access=limited|publisher=Springer-Praxis|page=[https://archive.org/details/sovietrobotssola00jrwe/page/n255 235]|isbn=978-1-4419-7897-4}}</ref> The first-ever direct observations and measurements of [[solar wind]],{{sfn|Harvey|2007a|p=26}}<ref name=nssdc/> a strong flow of [[Plasma (physics)|ionized plasma]] emanating from the Sun and streaming through interplanetary space, were performed.<ref name=nssdc/> The ionized plasma concentration was measured to be some 700 particles per cm<sup>3</sup> at altitudes of 20,000–25,000&nbsp;km and 300 to 400 particles per cm<sup>3</sup> at altitudes of 100,000–150,000&nbsp;km.<ref name="BSE59">{{cite book |trans-title=Yearbook of the [[Great Soviet Encyclopedia]] |year=1959 |publisher=Sovetskaya Enciklopediya |location=Moscow |language=ru |issn=0523-9613 |chapter=Soviet Space Rocket |title=Ežegodnik Bolʹšoj Sovetskoj Ėnciklopedii | chapter-url=http://epizodsspace.testpilot.ru/bibl/ejeg/1959/59.html#l1|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080118033153/http://epizodsspace.testpilot.ru/bibl/ejeg/1959/59.html#l1| archive-date=2008-01-18}}</ref> The spacecraft also marked the first instance of radio communication at the half-million-kilometer distance.

== Reaction ==

Some doubted the veracity of the Soviets' claim of mission success. [[Lloyd Mallan]] wrote about it in a book called ''The Big Red Lie''. Many in the West did not receive transmissions from the spacecraft even though the Soviets publicized them before the flight. By the time the Earth rotated so that scientists in the United States could pick up signals from the spacecraft, it was already {{convert|171000|km|sp=us}} away.{{sfn|Harvey|2007b|pp=28–29}} In May 1959 several hearings  ''Soviet Space Technology'' before the ''Committee on Science and Astronautics and Special Subcommittee on Lunik Probe'' of the [[United States House of Representatives]] attested the achievements of the Soviet mission and its sophisticated guidance technology.<ref>{{Cite web |year=1959 |title=Soviet Space Technology |url=https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/docs/CIA-RDP63T00245R000100290011-7.pdf |access-date=2022-11-01 |publisher=CIA |publication-date=2004-08-31}}</ref>

The Soviet Union issued stamps to commemorate their success.{{sfn|Harvey|2007b|p=30}}

==Subsequent missions==
[[File:Block-E_rocket_stage.png|thumb|upright|''Luna 1'' [[Blok E (R-7)|Blok E]] upper stage and payload configuration]]

''[[Luna 2]]'', the second spacecraft of the Ye-1A series, successfully completed the mission on 13 September 1959.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://in.reuters.com/article/topNews/idINIndia-36089520081022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081023030123/http://in.reuters.com/article/topNews/idINIndia-36089520081022|url-status=dead|archive-date=23 October 2008|title=Chronology – Five key dates in the race to the moon|website=Reuters|date=21 October 2008|access-date=10 November 2019}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Solar System|Spaceflight}}
* ''[[Pioneer 4]]'' – a similar [[NASA]] mission launched 3 March 1959, two months after ''Luna 1''.
* [[List of missions to the Moon]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite book|last=Cormack|first=Lesley B.|author-link= Lesley Cormack |title=A History of Science in Society: From Philosophy to Utility|edition=2nd |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P6qCnyO9D6wC&pg=PA342|year=2012|publisher=University of Toronto Press|isbn=978-1-4426-0446-9}}
* {{cite book|last1=Darling|first1=David|title=The complete book of spaceflight: from Apollo 1 to zero gravity|url=https://archive.org/details/completebookofsp00davi|url-access=registration|publisher=John Wiley and Sons|year=2003|isbn=978-0-471-05649-2}}
* {{cite book|last1=Harvey|first1=Brian|title=Russian planetary exploration: history, development, legacy, prospects|publisher=Springer|year=2007a|isbn=978-0-387-46343-8}}
* {{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nVeY7vMCtOkC&q=Soviet+and+Russian+Lunar+Exploration.|last1=Harvey|first1=Brian|title=Soviet and Russian Lunar Exploration|publisher=Springer|lccn=2006935327|isbn=978-0-387-21896-0|location=Chichester, UK|year=2007b}}
* {{cite book|last1=Reichl|first1=Eugen|title=The Soviet Space Program: the Lunar Mission Years 1959–1976|publisher=Schiffer Publishing|year=2019|isbn=978-0-7643-5675-9|lccn=2017955750|translator=David Johnston|location=Atglen, Pennsylvania}}
* {{cite book|url=https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/beyond-earth-tagged.pdf|title=Beyond Earth: A Chronicle of Deep Space Exploration, 1958–2016|last1=Siddiqi|first1=Asif A.|lccn=2017059404|isbn=978-1-62683-042-4|publisher=NASA History Program Office|edition=second|year=2018|id=SP2018-4041|series=The NASA history series|location=Washington, D.C.}}
* [[Boris Chertok]], "Rakety i liudi: goriachie dni, kholodnoy voyny", Moscow, "Mashinostroenie", 2nd edition (1999). [https://web.archive.org/web/20080803202303/http://epizodsspace.testpilot.ru/bibl/chertok/kniga-3/1-7.html Sect. 2–7].
* [http://www.zarya.info/Diaries/Luna/Luna01.php Zarya – ''Luna 1'' chronology]

==External links==
{{Commons|Commons:RIA Novosti/Luna 1}}

{{Luna programme}}
{{Orbital launches in 1959}}
{{Moon spacecraft}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:1959 in the Soviet Union]]
[[Category:Derelict satellites in heliocentric orbit]]
[[Category:Luna programme]]
[[Category:Spacecraft launched in 1959]]