Stamps of Russia: Flight of Lunik 3 (1960)

This set of two stamps celebrated the Flight of Lunik 3 to the Moon.

Perf 12 x 12 1/2

Released April 14-20, 1960

Luna 3, or E-2A No.1 was a Soviet spacecraft launched in 1959, the third space probe to be sent to the neighborhood of the Moon,

[citation needed] and this mission was an early feat in the spaceborne exploration of outer space. Though it returned rather poor pictures by later standards, the historic, never-before-seen views of the far side of the Moon caused excitement and interest when they were published around the world, and a tentative Atlas of the Far Side of the Moon was created after image processing improved the pictures.

These views showed mountainous terrain, very different from the near side, and only two dark, low-lying regions which were named Mare Moscoviense (Sea of Moscow) and Mare Desiderii (Sea of Desire). Mare Desiderii was later found to be composed of a smaller mare, Mare Ingenii (Sea of Ingenuity), and several other dark craters. The reason for this difference between the two sides of the Moon is still not fully understood, but it seems that most of the dark lavas that flowed out to produce the maria formed under the Earth-facing half.

Luna 3 was followed by the United States with Ranger 7, Ranger 8, and Ranger 9.