INTRODUCTION

Spacecraft have been studying the Moon for nearly half a century. The history of direct lunar exploration formally began in 1959, when probes from the Soviet's Luna spacecraft first flew by and then impacted the Moon's surface. Around the same time, NASA's Pioneer 4 passed within 37,000 miles of the Moon. Lunar Prospector is the first NASA mission to the moon in 25 years. Here you can take a look at some of the ideas and events that have paved the way.

Lunar History recounts the dramatic events of the last 40 years leading up to the launch of Lunar Prospector on January 6, 1998 (9:29 p.m. EST). It also includes some preliminary lunar findings and how they contribute to our understanding of the universe.

Moon Mythology examines the pre-scientific understanding of the Moon. Many stories from around the world can be found here along with brief histories of the various Godesses (and Gods) that have been associated with the Moon over the ages.

Lunar Timeline can be viewed in two formats. If you don't see anything when you try the Flash version, it probably means you do not have the Flash Plug-in installed on your system. We've provided another version so you can still check it out. Whichever version you chose you can get information on any mission that's ever studied the Moon. It even includes some missions that are still in the planning stages!