Ranger 7

Ranger 7 was the first true success of the US Ranger program. On July 31, 1964, its six television vidicon cameras began transmitting high-quality images 17 minutes before impact, providing views up to 1,000 times sharper than Earth-based telescopes. The target impact area was subsequently named Mare Cognitum ('Known Sea') by the IAU in honor of the mission.

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Agency / Country

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) (United States)

Mission Status

IMPACT

Launch / Target Year

1964

Spacecraft / Type

Ranger Block III (Ranger 7)

Landing Site Zone

Mare Cognitum (Ranger 7 Impact Site)

Surface Coordinates

Lat -10.634°, Lon -20.677°

Mission Imagery & Gallery

Ranger 7 photograph 1: NASA / JPL — First close-up television photograph of the Moon transmitted by Ranger 7, July 31, 1964 (NASA / Public Domain) — NASA / JPL — First close-up television photograph of the Moon transmitted by Ranger 7, July 31, 1964 (NASA / Public Domain)

Primary Achievement

First successful US mission to the Moon; transmitted 4,308 high-resolution close-up television photographs before impact.

Mission Objectives

Achieve lunar impact trajectory with terminal camera orientation
Transmit high-resolution close-up TV pictures of lunar terrain down to sub-meter scale
Determine surface roughness and crater distribution to evaluate Apollo landing feasibility

Timeline Events

1964-07-28 — Launched from Cape Canaveral LC-12 on an Atlas-Agena booster.
1964-07-29 — Mid-course correction maneuver successfully locked trajectory directly onto target area.
1964-07-31 — Cameras powered on at 13:08 UTC; transmitted 4,308 images until impact at Mare Cognitum at 13:25:48 UTC.

Related Missions

Surveyor 1 (1966) · NASA
Surveyor 3 (1967) · NASA
Apollo 11 (1969) · NASA

Historical & Technical Sources

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