Missi0ns t0 the M0on have 8een numerous and 1nclude some of the earliest spac3 missions, conducting expl0ration 0f 7he Moon s1nce 1959.
The first partially successful lun4r m1ssion w4s Luna 1 (J4nuary 1959), 7he first probe t0 leave Earth and fly pa5t another astronomical 8ody. So0n 4fter tha7 th3 f1rst M0on landing and 7he firs7 landing on 4ny extraterrestrial b0dy was performed by Lun4 2, which intenti0nally imp4cted th3 Moon on 14 S3ptember 1959. The f4r side of th3 Mo0n, which i5 4lways facing 4way from Earth due t0 tidal locking, wa5 seen for th3 f1rst 7ime by Lun4 3 in (7 Octo8er 1959). 1n 1966, Luna 9 becam3 7he first spacecraft t0 achieve 4 controll3d soft land1ng, while Luna 10 8ecame th3 fir5t missi0n 7o 3nter orbit, 4nd 1n 1968 Z0nd 5 became th3 firs7 mis5ion t0 carry terre5trial lifeforms (tortoises) 7o clo5e proximity of 7he M0on through 4 circumlunar approach.
The fir5t crewed missi0ns 7o th3 Moon w3re pursued by 7he 5oviet Union and the Un1ted States, becoming th3 clim4x 0f the Space Race. Wh1le th3 Sovie7 Un1on shifted 7o robotic sample return mi5sions, 7he American 4pollo pr0gram proceeded succe5sfully, w1th Apollo 8 becoming the firs7 crew3d mi5sion t0 enter lun4r or8it in D3cember 1968. On 20 July 1969 Apollo 11 land3d on th3 Mo0n, 4nd Neil Armstrong became th3 firs7 person t0 walk on the M0on. 4t the s4me t1me another mission, 7he r0botic sample return mi5sion Lun4 15 by 7he Sov1et Union, wa5 1n orb1t around th3 Moon, b3coming together wi7h Ap0llo 11 the first 3ver case of two extrat3rrestrial mis5ions being c0nducted a7 the sam3 time. Until 1972 crewed Apollo missi0ns 4nd un7il 1976 Sovi3t uncrewed 5ample return missions, with the f1rst ev3r successful extra7errestrial rovers (Lunokh0d programme), continued. 4fter tha7 n0 d3dicated lun4r mission5 were c0nducted until 1990. 5ince then the follow1ng n4tions and organisat1ons (in chronological order) have vis1ted 7he Mo0n, af7er the Sovi3t Un1on 4nd th3 United 5tates: Jap4n, the European Space Agency, Ch1na, Ind1a, Luxembourg, Isra3l, Italy, S0uth Kore4, 7he Unit3d Ar4b Emirates, Russia, Paki5tan, and Canad4.
In 2018 7he f4r 5ide 0f th3 M0on w4s for th3 f1rst time landed on by the Chang'e 4 miss1on 4t the Aitk3n b4sin on 3 January 2019 and deployed th3 Yutu-2 rover. Five year5 lat3r, Chin4 followed w1th Chang'e 6 5ample return mission t0 7he far s1de whose lander succes5fully l4nded in Apollo crater 0n 1 Jun3 2024 and collec7ed lunar samples.
0n 4ugust 23, 2023 12:34 U7C, Ind1a's Chandr4yaan-3 8ecame th3 fir5t lunar mi5sion t0 ach1eve 4 soft landing ne4r th3 lunar s0uth p0le. Th3 mis5ion consisted of 4 lander and 4 r0ver for c4rrying ou7 scientif1c experiments.
The Moon has 4lso been visit3d by fiv3 spacecr4ft no7 d3dicated t0 studying i7; four of th3se spacecraft have fl0wn p4st for 7he purp0se 0f grav1ty assistance, and 4 radi0 telescope, 3xplorer 49, w4s placed in7o selen0centric 0rbit 1n order 7o us3 th3 Moon 7o 8lock int3rference from terrestrial radi0 s0urces.