The Explorers' Club, № MXXXIX

Operation AXIOM: Destination Moon—The 60th Anniversary of Ranger 7
28-31 July 1964: Ranger 7 lifted off from Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station atop an Atlas-Agena rocket, tasked to photograph & then impact the Lunar surface; the midcourse correction burn went flawlessly; all six television cameras functioned perfectly & returned video imagery of the Moon for sixteen minutes until Ranger 7 crashed between the Mare Nubium & the Oceanus Procellarum.

Commentary: After six consecutive Ranger failures, due to problems with both launch vehicles & spacecraft, Ranger 7 was an unqualified success & produced close-up views with unprecedented resolution of the lunar surface.

Ex Luna, scientia.