 "(Left) Luna 2 was the first spacecraft to crash into the Moon, on September 15, 1959. Image/Nasa; (right) The first spacecraft to soft-land on the Moon was Luna 9. It was launched by the Soviet Union on January 31, 1966, and returned photographs of the lunar surface for three days. Image/Novosti Press Agency")
September 14 saw the Soviet Union’s Luna 2 spacecraft became the first human-made object to reach the moon in 1959.
Other events include the 1901 death of United States President William McKinley after an assassination attempt, and the 1982 death of Hollywood icon Grace Kelly, who became Princess of Monaco.
We take a look at these events as part of Firstpost’s History Today series.
Soviet probe reaches the moon
On September 14, 1959, the Soviet Union achieved a historic milestone in human space exploration when Luna 2, an unmanned spacecraft, became the first human-made object to reach the Moon.
This accomplishment was a defining moment in the space race, a high-stakes competition between the United States and the USSR during the Cold War.
The Luna 2 mission marked the second attempt by the Soviet Union to impact the Moon after the failure of its predecessor, Luna 1, which had missed the Moon earlier that year.
The launch of Sputnik 1 on October 4, 1957, by the USSR had stunned the world and marked the beginning of the space age.
It was the first artificial satellite to orbit Earth, demonstrating that the Soviet Union possessed advanced rocket technology capable of reaching outer space — and potentially delivering nuclear weapons across continents.
The US, caught off guard, scrambled to respond. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa) was established in 1958, with the goal of closing the technological gap.
The American programme faced early setbacks, while the Soviets continued to achieve high-profile victories, each carefully publicised to boost the USSR’s global standing.
In January 1959, the Soviets launched Luna 1, intended to crash-land on the Moon. Although it missed its target and sailed past the Moon, Luna 1 still became the first spacecraft to achieve escape velocity and travel into heliocentric orbit.
This near-success fuelled Soviet determination to perfect their lunar mission and achieve an undeniable first in the history of space exploration.
Luna 2 was part of the Soviet Luna programme, a series of robotic missions aimed at exploring the Moon and testing technologies that would eventually support crewed space travel.
The Luna 2 probe weighed approximately 390 kilogrammes (860 pounds) and was spherical in shape, equipped with protruding antennas and scientific instruments.
Some of its key scientific equipment included:
Geiger counters to measure cosmic radiation.
Scintillation counters to detect high-energy particles.
Magnetometers to measure magnetic fields.
Micrometeorite detectors to study small particle impacts.
Gas-discharge counters to detect charged particles in space.
In addition to its scientific payload, Luna 2 carried pennants with the Soviet state emblem and Cyrillic inscriptions, intended to symbolically mark the Moon with a sign of Soviet achievement — a gesture loaded with Cold War symbolism.
Luna 2 was launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on September 12, 1959, using a Vostok-L rocket, an adaptation of the powerful R-7 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).
This launch vehicle was the backbone of the Soviet space programme and had been used for earlier space milestones, including Sputnik.
The mission followed a direct trajectory toward the Moon. Unlike modern missions that typically enter lunar orbit before attempting a landing, Luna 2 was designed for a direct impact.
Its journey lasted just over 36 hours, with Soviet engineers closely monitoring its path using ground-based tracking stations.
During its flight, Luna 2 transmitted continuous data back to Earth, providing scientists with information on interplanetary space conditions.
The spacecraft’s instruments detected solar wind, measured cosmic radiation, and confirmed that the Moon lacked a significant magnetic field and atmosphere.
These were crucial scientific discoveries at the time, fundamentally expanding humanity’s understanding of the lunar environment.
At 21:02:24 Moscow Time (18:02:24 UTC), Luna 2 struck the Moon’s surface near the Mare Imbrium, a vast lunar plain visible from Earth with the naked eye.
The exact impact site was later determined to be between the Aristides, Archimedes, and Autolycus craters.
The collision was not observed directly by Soviet scientists, but the transmission of signals ceased abruptly at the moment of impact, confirming the mission’s success.
The Soviet Union immediately announced the achievement to the world, framing it as proof of the superiority of socialism and the USSR’s scientific leadership.
This success was not only a technical triumph but also a propaganda coup.
It showcased the USSR’s ability to reach beyond Earth and achieve a goal that the United States had not yet accomplished, further heightening the pressure on Nasa and the American government.
Many countries applauded the Soviet achievement as a remarkable step forward for all humanity. However, in the context of the Cold War, it was also a stark reminder of the USSR’s advanced missile and space technology.
In the United States, Luna 2 intensified fears of a “missile gap”, a perceived Soviet advantage in intercontinental ballistic missile capability. American newspapers and politicians demanded increased funding for space exploration and defence.
US President Dwight D Eisenhower, who had faced criticism after Sputnik, now faced renewed pressure to ensure the US could compete effectively in space.
Nasa accelerated its efforts in response, culminating in a series of missions aimed at reaching the Moon and eventually landing astronauts there — a goal that would be realised a decade later with Apollo 11 in July 1969.
While Luna 2’s primary goal was symbolic, the mission also provided important scientific data.
Among its contributions were:
Confirmation of no lunar magnetic field: Instruments confirmed that the Moon lacked a measurable magnetic field, which had implications for understanding its formation and geologic history.
Detection of solar wind: Luna 2 was among the first missions to detect and measure the solar wind, streams of charged particles emitted by the Sun.
Cosmic radiation measurements: The probe provided new data on radiation levels beyond Earth’s atmosphere, crucial for planning future human space missions.
Study of micrometeorites: Detectors recorded information about small particle impacts in space, enhancing knowledge of the interplanetary environment.
These findings laid the groundwork for future lunar exploration, both robotic and crewed.
Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev capitalised on the moment by highlighting the achievement during a state visit to the United States just days later.
He reportedly presented Eisenhower with a replica of the Soviet pennants carried aboard Luna 2, a gesture that was equal parts diplomatic overture and political challenge.
It inspired generations of Soviet citizens and served as a rallying point for the country’s ambitious space programme, which would go on to launch the first human, Yuri Gagarin, into space in April 1961.
Today, Luna 2’s impact site remains a silent marker of humanity’s first step beyond Earth.
Though no visible remains of the spacecraft exist, Luna 2’s crash landing on the Moon was a reminder that humanity’s reach was expanding beyond our planet — and that the quest to explore the universe had only just begun.
Death of US President William McKinley
US President William McKinley died on this day in 1901, eight days after being shot by anarchist Leon Czolgosz at the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, New York.
McKinley’s assassination shocked the nation and abruptly ended his presidency.
Upon McKinley’s death, US Vice President Theodore Roosevelt was sworn in as the 26th President of the United States.
Roosevelt’s ascension ushered in a new era of progressive policies, while McKinley’s death highlighted the growing tensions between anarchist movements and government institutions at the turn of the 20th century.
Grace Kelly dies
On September 14, 1982, Grace Kelly, Hollywood actress turned Princess of Monaco, died at the age of 52 following a car accident.
Kelly had been driving along a winding road in Monaco when she suffered a stroke, causing her to lose control of the vehicle.
Her daughter, Princess Stéphanie, was also in the car but survived.
Grace Kelly was one of Hollywood’s most celebrated actresses in the 1950s, starring in films such as Rear Window and To Catch a Thief.
Her marriage to Prince Rainier III of Monaco in 1956 captivated the world, and her tragic death shocked fans and royals alike.
With inputs from agencies