Ranger 6
Ranger 6 was the first Block III Ranger mission, replacing the earlier seismometer capsule with six television cameras intended to photograph the Moon during final approach in support of Apollo. Launched on January 30, 1964, it reached and impacted the Moon on February 2 as planned, but a short circuit in the camera power supply during launch left the imaging system inoperable.
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Identity
- Aliases
- Ranger 6Ranger VIRanger 6 Lunar Impact Probe
- Name
- Ranger 6
- Status
- failed
Details
- Astronauts
- -
- Description
- Ranger 6 was the first Block III Ranger mission, replacing the earlier seismometer capsule with six television cameras intended to photograph the Moon during final approach in support of Apollo. Launched on January 30, 1964, it reached and impacted the Moon on February 2 as planned, but a short circuit in the camera power supply during launch left the imaging system inoperable.
- Destination
- On-target lunar impact; short circuit disabled the TV camera system before impact
- End Date
- 1964-02-02
- Outcome
- The spacecraft completed its lunar flight and planned impact, but returned no lunar photographs because the camera system failed.
- Programs
- Start Date
- 1964-01-30
- Vehicle Families
Links
- Official Url
- https://science.nasa.gov/mission/ranger-6/
Assets & Meta
- Creation Time
- August 14, 2026 at 17:22:20 UTC
- Updated Time
- October 17, 2026 at 14:01:55 UTC
Other
- Affiliations
- -
- Space Stations
- -
- Vehicles