What countries have landed on the moon - To date, five nations, including the United States, China, Japan, Luxembourg, and India, and two political unions - the Soviet Union and the European Union, have successfully landed on the moon.
However, the US stays on the top of the list as it has landed on the lunar surface with humans while the rest have landed unmanned probes.
For further explanation, we have covered a few more facts about what countries have landed on the moon in this article, so keep reading!
Which country landed on the moon first?
After a series of failures, the Soviet Union was the first nation to land softly on the lunar surface with their Luna 2 rocket in 1959.
After a decade or less, in 1969, during the Apollo 11 mission, it was the United States that, for the first time, made it possible for a man to walk on the moon’s surface.
Undoubtedly, the US’s Apollo program has promoted the human exploration of the moon.
FIND OUT MORE ABOUT LUNARPHASE PRO HERE!
How many people have been to the moon?
So far, around 24 astronauts have travelled to the moon during the nine Apollo missions between 1968 and 1972. Among them, 12 travellers got the privilege of walking on the moon’s surface.
The lucky ones who have walked on the moon are:
- Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin ( Apollo 11 )
- Pete Conrad, Alan Bean ( Apollo 12 )
- Alan Sheppard, Edgar Mitchell ( Apollo 14 )
- David Scott, James Irvin ( Apollo 15 )
- John Young, Charles Duke ( Apollo 16 )
- Gene Cernan, Harrison Schmitt ( Apollo 17 )
When was the last moon landing?
The last successful manned moon landing took place through Apollo 17 on 19 December 1972.
It was a 12-day trip and had broken many records, including the longest moonwalk and the longest trip to last on the moon. Also, it collected the largest lunar samples.
Since then, no one has visited the moon again. The major reason for this is the money. The cost of getting to the moon is colossal.
When did Russia land on the moon?
In 1959, Russia marked history by being the first nation to explore the lunar surface with the Luna 2 spacecraft. They did it on the sixth attempt.
In fact, it was the start of the world space exploration race that eventually led to the creation of many magnificent facts about the moon.
Additionally, Russia has performed almost 23 missions to the moon; however, never has it landed a manned mission or a cosmonaut on the moon.
Conclusion
The successful moon landings have put mankind a step closer to exploring our nearest celestial neighbour.
Although only a few countries have landed on the moon’s surface, the number will hopefully increase in the near future.