1 day / second
0.5 AU
The first crewed spacecraft to leave Earth's orbit, reach the Moon, and return safely to Earth in December 1968, carrying astronauts Frank Borman, James Lovell, and William Anders who captured the iconic "Earthrise" photograph.
organization | NASA |
orbital regime | Inner System |
learn more | Wikipedia |
crew | Frank Borman, James Lovell, William Anders |
launched | 1968-12-21 |
returned | 1968-12-27 |
launch mass | 28,870 kg |
December 21, 1968 at 12:51 UTC
Orbiter
Apollo 8 became the first crewed spacecraft to leave Earth's orbit, reach the Moon, and orbit another celestial body during its historic 20-hour lunar orbit beginning on December 24, 1968.
December 27, 1968 at 15:51 UTC
After completing the first crewed mission to orbit the Moon and capturing the iconic "Earthrise" photo, Apollo 8 successfully splashed down in the Pacific Ocean, concluding humanity's first journey to another celestial body.
Launched in 1969
Crewed by Thomas Stafford, Gene Cernan, John Young
The Apollo 10 mission, launched in May 1969, served as a full dress rehearsal for the Moon landing, with astronauts flying the Lunar Module to within 8.4 nautical miles of the lunar surface before returning safely to Earth.
Launched in 1969
Crewed by Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, Michael Collins
The first crewed spacecraft to land humans on the Moon launched on July 16, 1969, carrying astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins on their historic mission that culminated in Armstrong and Aldrin's 21-hour lunar surface exploration while Collins orbited above.
Launched in 1969
Crewed by Pete Conrad, Alan Bean, Richard Gordon
The second crewed mission to land on the Moon, launched on November 14, 1969, successfully landed astronauts Pete Conrad and Alan Bean near Surveyor 3 in Oceanus Procellarum for a 31.5-hour lunar surface stay.
Launched in 1970
Crewed by Jim Lovell, Jack Swigert, Fred Haise
A lunar mission launched in 1970 that suffered a near-catastrophic oxygen tank explosion en route to the Moon, forcing the crew to abort their landing and return safely to Earth after a harrowing journey around the lunar far side.
Launched in 1971
Crewed by Alan Shepard, Stuart Roosa, Edgar Mitchell
The third crewed mission to land on the Moon launched on January 31, 1971, with astronauts Alan Shepard and Edgar Mitchell spending 33.5 hours on the Fra Mauro highlands and conducting extensive scientific experiments despite communication problems during their lunar descent.
Launched in 1971
Crewed by David Scott, Alfred Worden, James Irwin
Apollo 15 landed astronauts David Scott and James Irwin on the Moon's Hadley-Apennine region in July 1971, where they conducted three EVAs, deployed scientific instruments, and became the first mission to use the Lunar Roving Vehicle.
Launched in 1972
Crewed by John Young, Ken Mattingly, Charlie Duke
Launched in April 1972, Apollo 16 carried astronauts John Young and Charles Duke to the Moon's Descartes Highlands where they conducted three EVAs, collected 95.8 kg of lunar samples, and set a lunar land speed record of 17.1 km/h in their rover.
Launched in 1972
Crewed by Gene Cernan, Ronald Evans, Jack Schmitt
The final mission in the Apollo program, launched on December 7, 1972, carried astronauts Eugene Cernan, Harrison Schmitt, and Ronald Evans to the Moon, where Cernan and Schmitt conducted three EVAs totaling 22 hours in the Taurus-Littrow valley while Evans orbited above.