On April 3, 2023, NASA announced that humans are soaring back to the Moon for the first time in over 50 years, since the return of Apollo 17 in 1972. Four astronauts, Americans, Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Canadian Jeremey Hansen, are set to embark on a 10-day journey aboard the Orion spacecraft in a mission NASA hopes will pave the way for sending the first astronauts to Mars. The mission, dubbed “Artemis II,” seeks to establish humanity’s first long-term presence on the Moon, and will set the stage to land the first woman and next man on the Moon during the subsequent “Artemis III” mission.
Unlike the generations before me (a middling Millennial), I have never known the exhilaration of watching my fellow human beings set foot on the moon during my lifetime. My excitement for the years to come is palpable; and I thought there no better way to celebrate this next step in lunar exploration than by revisiting some of humankind’s earlier efforts to map out the surface of the Moon. Fortunately for me (and perhaps for you, dear reader), I work in the Cartographic Branch of the National Archives, and maps are our specialty. So, without further ado, let’s go to the Moon!
The earliest charts depicting the Moon I unearthed in our collection hail from Record Group 77: Records of the Office of the Chief of Engineers. Compiled under the direction of the Military Geology Branch, U.S. Geological Survey in July 1960, these charts, each of which come in two pieces, were created from a photogeologic analysis using stereoscopic vision to examine photographs taken from McDonald Observatory (TX), Yerkes Observatory (WI), Lick Observatory (CA), and the Paris Observatory in France. The charts, alongside a table of data, comprise “The Engineer Special Study of the Surface of the Moon.”
This first map “divides the moon into physiographic regions, based on degree of similarity or difference in type of surface features, extent of preservation, type of modification, type of surface material, elevations, slopes, and structural disturbances. The major divisions of the moon consist of the Lunar Highlands containing thousands of craters, and the Lunar Lowlands consisting of the maria and associated features.”
The next map in this study “Divides the rock formations on the surface into Pre-Maria, Maria, and Post-Maria age…the photogeologic map, in addition, identifies individual impact craters, and indicates whether or not the crater has a central peak or mountain.”
The final map of this study “shows the principal lunar rays, many of which are so prominent they are observable at full moon with binoculars.”
In the early 1960s, NASA ran the Ranger project, the first U.S.-led effort to launch probes directly into the surface of the Moon. The spacecraft were affixed with cameras that would capture and send images of the Moon back to Earth just before impact. The first six Ranger missions were declared either partial or total failures. However, Ranger missions 7-9 were an astounding success. The photographs taken on these missions aided in identifying safe landing sites for the forthcoming Apollo missions. The following charts were compiled from the images taken from the final three Ranger missions, and can be found in RG 342: Records of the U.S. Air Force Commands, Activities, and Organizations.
Ranger VII launched on July 28th, 1964 and crashed into the Mare Cognitum region of the Moon on July 31, 1964. The mission lasted 2 days, 20 hours, 35 minutes, and 42 seconds, and a total of 4,316 photographs were taken. Check out this link to see video footage from Ranger VII!
Ranger VIII launched on February 17th, 1965 and crashed into the Moon on February 20th, 1965. The mission lasted 2 days, 16 hours, 52 minutes, 37 seconds and a total of 7,137 photographs were taken.
Ranger IX launched on March 21, 1965 and crashed into the Moon on March 24, 1965. The mission lasted 2 days, 16 hours, 31minutes, 18 seconds and a total of 5,814 images were taken.
In 1966 and 1967, the U.S. ran the Lunar Orbiter program. A series of five uncrewed Lunar orbiter spacecraft were sent to orbit the moon in order to identify viable landing sites for the Apollo missions. Each of the missions were successful, and by the end of the fifth mission 99% of the lunar surface had been accurately mapped. This chart, from RG 342: Records of the U.S. Air Force Commands, Activities, and Organizations, shows the Moon’s polar regions based on photographs from all five missions.
The final chart I have to share with you was created during Apollo Mission 17, the last of the Apollo missions, and the last time humans set foot on the Moon or traveled beyond low Earth orbit. The missions launched on December 7, 1972, and the craft returned to Earth on December 19, 1972. Two of the three astronauts conducted scientific experiments on the lunar surface, while one remained in orbit to gather photographs and mapping data.
Perhaps one day, several decades from now, a Cartographic Archives Technician will write a blog post about the wealth of information we learn from 21st century space exploration.
For more information about U.S.-lead space exploration, visit https://www.nasa.gov/missions.
This is very cool! I love the moon. It has always intrigued me since I was a little girl. I can’t wait to see your next blog!
great post.
Quite revealing to see a variety of mapping, photogrammmteric , mosaic and topographic ( using a msp projection to best fit the needs of what required to present) themed of the moon surface from about 1960 to 1965 from several U.S authority sources …Reading the notes on the LHS of the gridded topo mapping quite interesting to as my field is to be fully qaulified in Land Surveying Cartography and Photogrammetry so to understand all viewed
Great maps, Frankie! Those early mapping missions were so important in determining viable landing sites for the Apollo missions. As we’ve seen recently, landing on the Moon remains difficult in 2023. Imagine what it was like trying to do it over 50 years ago!
“Fly me to the Moon and let me play among the stars;
let me know what it is like on Jupiter and Mars.”