Exploring the Successes and Failures of the Moon Landing

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.—Landing a spacecraft on the moon has historically been a mix of successes and failures.

Last year, a lander developed by Intuitive Machines under a NASA-sponsored initiative marked the U.S.’s return to the moon for the first time since the Apollo era, though it ultimately tipped onto its side and functioned only briefly on the lunar surface.

Now, another American company, Firefly Aerospace, has made headlines by successfully landing its lunar lander on Sunday, becoming the first private entity to achieve a fully successful moon landing.

Both companies are part of NASA’s mission to facilitate commercial deliveries to the moon ahead of the planned astronaut missions later this decade.

The moon has become a graveyard for numerous failed landers over the years. Here’s a summary of the moon’s successes and failures:

First Victories

The Soviet Union’s Luna 9 made a successful landing in 1966, after earlier attempts either crashed or missed completely. Four months later, the U.S. followed with Surveyor 1. Both nations continued achieving robotic landings as the competition to send humans to the moon intensified.

Apollo Triumphs

NASA secured victory in the space race against the Soviets in 1969 when Apollo 11’s Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on the moon. Over the course of six missions, twelve astronauts explored the lunar surface, concluding with Apollo 17 in 1972. As the only nation to have sent humans to the moon, the U.S. aims to return astronauts to the lunar surface by late 2026, a year following a lunar fly-by by astronauts.

China’s Rise

In 2013, China became the third country to successfully land on the moon, deploying a rover named Yutu, which translates to jade rabbit. China followed this with the Yutu-2 rover in 2019, achieving a landing on the unexplored far side of the moon—an impressive first. A 2020 sample return mission from the near side yielded nearly 4 pounds of lunar rocks and soil. Another sample return mission from the far side in 2024 is expected to bring back materials from the less studied region of the moon. Seen as NASA’s chief competitor, China has plans to send its astronauts to the moon by 2030.

Russia’s Misstep

In 2023, Russia made an attempt for its first moon landing in almost fifty years, but the Luna 25 spacecraft crashed into the lunar surface. The last successful Russian lander, Luna 24 from 1976, not only landed but also returned lunar samples to Earth.

India’s Second Success

After its initial lander crashed in 2019, India regrouped and launched Chandrayaan-3 in 2023. The spacecraft successfully landed, making India the fourth nation to achieve a lunar landing, just four days after Russia’s incident.

Japan’s Unfortunate Landing

Japan became the fifth country to achieve a successful lunar landing in January, though its spacecraft landed in a less advantageous position, limiting its solar power generation. Nevertheless, it managed to capture and send back images and data before going silent during the length of the lunar night.

Private Moon Ventures

A privately funded Israeli mission named Beresheet, which translates to “in the beginning,” crashed on the moon in 2019. In 2023, a lunar lander from a Japanese entrepreneur’s company, ispace, also met with failure.

However, Intuitive Machines succeeded in becoming the first private organization to accomplish a safe moon landing. Although their lander tipped onto its side in 2024, it operated briefly with limited communication before going silent. Meanwhile, another U.S. firm, Astrobotic Technology, attempted to send its lander to the moon in the same year but had to abort the mission due to a fuel leak, ultimately returning to Earth in flames over the Pacific Ocean.

This year has seen renewed interest in private lunar missions following Firefly’s successful landing of Blue Ghost, which delivered scientific experiments for NASA. Intuitive Machines and ispace are also gearing up for further lunar deliveries.

By Marcia Dunn