The Explorers' Club, № MCLXXXVIII

Operation AXIOM: Destination Moon—The 60th Anniversary of Luna 12
22 October 1966-19 January 1967: The Luna 12 probe (A.K.A. Lunik 12) lifted off from the Kazakh S.S.R.'s Baikonur Cosmodrome atop a Molniya-M rocket; Luna 12 entered lunar orbit (25 October) & transmitted its first high-resolution photographs home (27 October); an unknown number of photos were sent via 302 radio transmissions; radio communications were terminated after 602 orbits.

Commentary: The Soviets took steps to prevent the U.K.'s Jodrell Bank Observatory from intercepting & pubishing their transmitted photos, as had happened with the Luna 9 lander's images in February. The Soviets only ever released a handful of photos of the Mare Imbrium & the Aristarchus Crater.

Ex Luna, scientia.