Latest news with #Surveyor1
Chicago Tribune
5 days ago
- Politics
- Chicago Tribune
Today in History: Timothy McVeigh convicted
Today is Monday, June 2, the 153rd day of 2025. There are 212 days left in the year. Today in history: On June 2, 1997, Timothy McVeigh was convicted of murder by a federal jury in the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, which killed 168 people. (McVeigh would be sentenced to death and was executed in 2001.) Also on this date: In 1886, 49-year-old President Grover Cleveland became the first president to get married in the White House, wedding 21-year-old Frances Folsom. In 1924, Congress passed, and President Calvin Coolidge signed, the Indian Citizenship Act, a measure guaranteeing full American citizenship for all Native Americans born within U.S. territorial limits. In 1941, baseball's 'Iron Horse,' Lou Gehrig, died in New York of the degenerative disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease; he was 37. In 1953, Queen Elizabeth II was crowned at age 27 at a ceremony in London's Westminster Abbey, 16 months after the death of her father, King George VI. In 1966, U.S. space probe Surveyor 1 landed on the moon and began transmitting detailed photographs of the lunar surface. In 1999, South Africans went to the polls in their second post-apartheid election, giving the African National Congress a decisive victory; retiring President Nelson Mandela was succeeded by Thabo Mbeki. In 2012, ousted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak was sentenced to life in prison after a court convicted him on charges of complicity in the killing of protesters during the 2011 uprising that forced him from power (Mubarak was later acquitted and freed in March 2017; he died in February 2020). In 2016, autopsy results revealed that musician Prince died of an accidental overdose of fentanyl, a powerful opioid painkiller. Today's Birthdays: Actor Stacy Keach is 84. Filmmaker Lasse Hallström is 79. Actor Jerry Mathers is 77. Actor Joanna Gleason is 75. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman is 73. Actor Dennis Haysbert is 71. Comedian Dana Carvey is 70. TV personality-producer Andy Cohen is 57. Actor-comedian Wayne Brady is 53. Actor Wentworth Miller is 53. Actor Zachary Quinto is 48. Actor Justin Long is 47. Actor Morena Baccarin is 46. Olympic soccer gold medalist Abby Wambach is 45. Actor-rapper Awkwafina is 37.
Boston Globe
5 days ago
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Today in History: June 2, Queen Elizabeth II crowned
In 1886, 49-year-old President Grover Cleveland became the first president to get married in the White House, wedding 21-year-old Frances Folsom. Advertisement In 1924, Congress passed, and President Calvin Coolidge signed, the Indian Citizenship Act, a measure guaranteeing full American citizenship for all Native Americans born within US territorial limits. In 1941, baseball's 'Iron Horse,' Lou Gehrig, died in New York of the degenerative disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease; he was 37. Advertisement In 1953, Queen Elizabeth II was crowned at age 27 at a ceremony in London's Westminster Abbey, 16 months after the death of her father, King George VI. In 1966, US space probe Surveyor 1 landed on the moon and began transmitting detailed photographs of the lunar surface. In 1997, Timothy McVeigh was convicted of murder by a federal jury in the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, which killed 168 people. (McVeigh would be sentenced to death and was executed in 2001.) In 1999, South Africans went to the polls in their second post-apartheid election, giving the African National Congress a decisive victory; retiring President Nelson Mandela was succeeded by Thabo Mbeki. In 2012, ousted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak was sentenced to life in prison after a court convicted him on charges of complicity in the killing of protesters during the 2011 uprising that forced him from power. (Mubarak was later acquitted and freed in March 2017; he died in February 2020). In 2016, autopsy results revealed that musician Prince died of an accidental overdose of fentanyl, a powerful opioid painkiller.
Voice of America
09-03-2025
- Science
- Voice of America
A Short History of Spacecraft Landings on the Moon
Many years have passed since the first spacecraft landed on the moon in 1966. From then until now, there have been many additional attempts with some succeeding and others failing. Here is a short history of some of these attempts. First victories The Soviet Union's Luna 9 spacecraft was the first to land on the moon. It touched down on the lunar surface in 1966. The landing came after several other Soviet spacecraft either did not reach the moon or crashed on the surface. The American space agency NASA says Luna 9 was the first spacecraft to carry out a soft landing on the moon. It was also the first to send 'photographic data' from the moon's surface to Earth. Luna 9's landing proved 'the lunar surface could support the weight of a lander and that an object would not sink into a loose layer of dust as some models predicted,' NASA said. In May 1966, the United States followed with its Surveyor 1 mission. NASA describes this effort as 'the first of a series of seven robotic spacecraft sent to the moon to gather data in preparation for NASA's Apollo missions.' The successful soft landing of Surveyor 1 'was one of the great successes of NASA's early lunar and interplanetary program.' Both the U.S. and Soviet Union had other successful robotic landings. Next, the countries aimed to be the first to land humans on the moon. Apollo program In 1969, NASA successfully landed Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the moon. The U.S. Apollo program sent 12 astronauts to explore the moon over six missions. Apollo 17 was the last in 1972. The U.S. is still the only country to land humans on the moon. NASA officials say the agency's Artemis program aims to return astronauts to the lunar surface possibly by the end of 2026. China expands space efforts In 2013, China became the third country to successfully land a spacecraft on the moon. China landed an exploring vehicle, or rover named Yutu that year. China followed with the Yutu-2 rover in 2019, this time touching down on the moon's unexplored far side. In 2020, China successfully returned samples of rock and dirt collected by the rovers. The mission returned about 1.7 kilograms of lunar material collected from the near side of the moon. Then in 2024, another mission returned rock and soil samples from the less explored far side of the moon. China has said it aims to land its astronauts on the moon by 2030. Russian landing failure In 2023, Russia tried its first moon landing in nearly 50 years. The Luna 25 spacecraft was attempting to land near the lunar south pole. But it is believed to have crash landed on the moon's surface. The country's last effort before that, Luna 24 in 1976, landed successfully and returned moon rocks to Earth. India succeeds on second attempt After its first lander crashed into the moon in 2019, India made its second attempt in 2023. The country successfully landed its Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft on the lunar surface. The mission made India the fourth nation to complete a moon landing. Japan lands sideways In January 2024, Japan became the fifth country to successfully land a spacecraft on the moon. But the SLIM spacecraft landed upside down. This caused some power and communication problems, but the lander was able to operate for a short time. I'm Bryan Lynn. The Associated Press reported this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the report for VOA Learning English with additional information from NASA. ____________________________________________________ Words in This Story layer – n. an amount of a substance that covers a surface mission – n. (space travel) the flight of a spacecraft to perform a certain task or job sample – n. a small amount of something that gives you information about the thing it was taken from
Yahoo
02-03-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Here's a look at moon landing hits and misses
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Landing a spacecraft on the moon has long been a series of hits and misses. Last year, a spacecraft built by Intuitive Machines through a NASA-sponsored program put the U.S. back on the moon for the first time since the end of the Apollo program, but the lander ended up tipping on its side and operated briefly on the surface. Now another U.S. company — Firefly Aerospace — on Sunday added its lunar lander to the win list, becoming the first private entity to pull off a fully successful moon landing. Both U.S. businesses are part of NASA's effort to support commercial deliveries to the moon ahead of astronaut missions later this decade. The moon is littered with wreckage from failed landings over the years. A rundown on the moon's winners and losers: First victories The Soviet Union's Luna 9 successfully touches down on the moon in 1966, after its predecessors crash or miss the moon altogether. The U.S. follows four months later with Surveyor 1. Both countries achieve more robotic landings, as the race heats up to land men. Apollo rules NASA clinches the space race with the Soviets in 1969 with a moon landing by Apollo 11's Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin. Twelve astronauts explore the surface over six missions, before the program ends with Apollo 17 in 1972. Still the only country to send humans to the moon, the U.S. hopes to return crews to the surface by the end of 2026 or so, a year after a lunar fly-around by astronauts. China emerges China, in 2013, becomes the third country to successfully land on the moon, delivering a rover named Yutu, Chinese for jade rabbit. China follows with the Yutu-2 rover in 2019, this time touching down on the moon's unexplored far side — an impressive first. A sample return mission on the moon's near side in 2020 yields nearly 4 pounds (1.7 kilograms) of lunar rocks and dirt. Another sample return mission from the far side in 2024 delivers rocks and soil from the less explored part of the moon . Seen as NASA's biggest moon rival, China aims to put its astronauts on the moon by 2030. Russia stumbles In 2023, Russia tries for its first moon landing in nearly a half-century, but the Luna 25 spacecraft smashes into the moon. The country's previous lander — 1976's Luna 24 — not only landed, but returned moon rocks to Earth. India triumphs on take 2 After its first lander slams into the moon in 2019, India regroups and launches Chandrayaan-3 (Hindi for moon craft) in 2023. The craft successfully touches down, making India the fourth country to score a lunar landing. The win comes just four days after Russia's crash-landing. Japan lands sideways Japan becomes the fifth country to land successfully on the moon, with its spacecraft touching down in January. The craft lands on the wrong side, compromising its ability to generate solar power, but manages to crank out pictures and science before falling silent when the long lunar night sets in. Private moon landing attempts A privately funded lander from Israel, named Beresheet, Hebrew for 'in the beginning,' crashes into the moon in 2019. A Japanese entrepreneur's company, ispace, launches a lunar lander in 2023, but it, too, wrecks. Intuitive Machines becomes the first private outfit to achieve a safe moon landing. The lander tipped over on its side in 2024, but worked briefly with limited communications. Another U.S. company — Astrobotic Technology — tried to send a lander to the moon the same year, but had to give up because of a fuel leak, eventually returning to Earth and burning up over the Pacific. There's another private rush to the moon this year after Firefly landed Blue Ghost, delivering experiments for NASA. Intuitive Machines and ispace also plan more moon deliveries. ___ The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Marcia Dunn, The Associated Press
