2023-08-10 22:12:50
Definitely not first, they were the first. Luna 9 (Jan. 31, 1966) made the first successful lunar soft landing. Luna 16 (Sept. 12, 1970) was the first unmanned spacecraft to carry lunar soil samples back to Earth [Link] NEEDS_MORE_RATINGS(7-0-0) Author
2023-08-11 05:06:27
Russia has previously had 15 succesful moon launches. The first was in september 1959. At this Wikipedia you can also see images. It also has reliable sources. [Link] CURRENTLY_RATED_HELPFUL(10-1-2) Author
2023-08-11 07:15:05
No notes needed linking to the USSR era. This post clearly says Russia. So this is the first of its kind. Korolev, the lead rocket engineer and spacecraft designer during the Space Race was Ukrainian. [Link] BBC: [Link] NEEDS_MORE_RATINGS(0-0-2) Author