{"id":203919,"date":"2020-02-20T10:26:00","date_gmt":"2020-02-20T15:26:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/?p=203919"},"modified":"2024-03-14T07:08:08","modified_gmt":"2024-03-14T11:08:08","slug":"lewis-launched-lunar-orbiter-3-to-the-moon-in-the-1960s","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/lewis-launched-lunar-orbiter-3-to-the-moon-in-the-1960s\/","title":{"rendered":"Lewis Launched Lunar Orbiter 3 to the Moon in the 1960s"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"\" class=\"padding-top-5 padding-bottom-3 width-full maxw-full hds-module hds-module-full wp-block-nasa-blocks-article-intro\"><div class=\"width-full maxw-full article-header\"><div class=\"margin-bottom-2 width-full maxw-full\"><p class=\"label carbon-60 margin-0 margin-bottom-3 padding-0\">2 min read<\/p><h1 class=\"display-48 margin-bottom-2\">Lewis Launched Lunar Orbiter 3 to the Moon in the 1960s<\/h1><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n<div id=\"\" class=\"hds-media hds-module wp-block-image\"><div class=\"margin-left-auto margin-right-auto nasa-block-align-wide\"><div class=\"hds-media-wrapper margin-left-auto margin-right-auto\"><figure class=\"hds-media-inner hds-cover-wrapper hds-media-ratio-fit \"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/3214-med-c.jpg\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1041\" height=\"321\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/3214-med-c.jpg?w=1041\" class=\"attachment-2048x2048 size-2048x2048\" alt=\"View from spacecraft of the lunar surface.\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/3214-med-c.jpg 1041w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/3214-med-c.jpg?resize=300,93 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/3214-med-c.jpg?resize=768,237 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/3214-med-c.jpg?resize=1024,316 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/3214-med-c.jpg?resize=400,123 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/3214-med-c.jpg?resize=600,185 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/3214-med-c.jpg?resize=900,278 900w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1041px) 100vw, 1041px\" loading=\"eager\" \/><\/a><\/figure><figcaption class=\"hds-caption padding-y-2\"><div class=\"hds-caption-text p-sm margin-0\">A view of the Moon\u2019s surface from Lunar Orbiter 3 cameras. Credits: NASA<\/div><div class=\"hds-credits\">NASA<\/div><\/figcaption><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p>Before <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/mission_pages\/apollo\/index.html\">Apollo<\/a> missions landed on the Moon, NASA launched a series of orbiters to photographically explore the lunar surface to identify possible landing sites.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On February 4, 1967*, engineers from the Lewis Research Center (now Glenn) directed the launch of <a href=\"https:\/\/solarsystem.nasa.gov\/missions\/lunar-orbiter-3\/in-depth\/\" rel=\"noopener\">Lunar Orbiter 3<\/a>. The nearly nine-month mission provided NASA planners with the imagery and data necessary to decide on the final landing sites.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A 25-person Lewis team traveled to Pad 13 at Cape Kennedy (now Cape Canaveral) in late January of that year to carry out the Lunar Orbiter 3 launch. The team had managed 18 prior launches of the Atlas-Agena launch system by defining the launch vehicle requirements and overseeing the design, fabrication, testing and integration of hardware.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At 8:17 p.m. ET, the Atlas-Agena lifted off the pad into the clear night sky and just over five minutes later, the Agena separated from the Atlas and fired its 16,000-pound thrust engine to enter a parking orbit for approximately 10 minutes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It was critical that the spacecraft commenced its lunar trajectory at a very precise location 118 miles from Earth. The Lewis team timed the reignition of Agena\u2019s engine nearly perfectly.  Lunar Orbiter 3 entered its translunar injection point within 7.5 mph of the intended 24,450 mph velocity. This resulted in a mid-course correction of a mere 3.3 meters per second as the spacecraft sailed toward the Moon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The first two Lunar Orbiters photographically explored the surface of the Moon to identify possible landing sites for Apollo. Lunar Orbiter 3 successfully provided additional information on the 12 most promising sites and gathered scientific information from 32 additional locations. Lewis subsequently launched the final two Lunar Orbiters, which provided additional scientific data.<\/p>\n\n\n<div id=\"\" class=\"hds-media hds-module wp-block-image\"><div class=\"margin-left-auto margin-right-auto nasa-block-align-inline\"><div class=\"hds-media-wrapper margin-left-auto margin-right-auto\"><figure class=\"hds-media-inner hds-cover-wrapper hds-media-ratio-fit \"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/el-2002-00514.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"842\" height=\"1460\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/el-2002-00514.jpg?w=842\" class=\"attachment-2048x2048 size-2048x2048\" alt=\"Rocket launch at night.\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/el-2002-00514.jpg 842w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/el-2002-00514.jpg?resize=173,300 173w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/el-2002-00514.jpg?resize=768,1332 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/el-2002-00514.jpg?resize=591,1024 591w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/el-2002-00514.jpg?resize=231,400 231w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/el-2002-00514.jpg?resize=346,600 346w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/el-2002-00514.jpg?resize=519,900 519w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/el-2002-00514.jpg?resize=692,1200 692w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 842px) 100vw, 842px\" \/><\/a><\/figure><figcaption class=\"hds-caption padding-y-2\"><div class=\"hds-caption-text p-sm margin-0\">The Atlas-Agena rocket launches Lunar Orbiter 3 on a mission to image the Moon\u2019s surface to determine future Apollo landing sites<\/div><div class=\"hds-credits\">NASA<\/div><\/figcaption><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p>*Official NASA sites list the launch date as Feb. 5 when using Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><em>Robert S. Arrighi<\/em><br><em>NASA’s Glenn Research Center<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n<div id=\"\" class=\"nasa-gb-align-full width-full maxw-full padding-x-3 padding-y-0 hds-module hds-module-full wp-block-nasa-blocks-related-articles\">\t\t<section class=\"hds-related-articles padding-x-0 padding-y-3 desktop:padding-top-7 desktop:padding-bottom-9\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"w-100 grid-row grid-container maxw-widescreen padding-0 text-align-left\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-4\"><h2 style=\"max-width: 100%;\" class=\"width-full w-full maxw-full\">Explore More<\/h2><\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<div class=\"grid-row grid-container maxw-widescreen padding-0\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid-col-12 desktop:grid-col-4 margin-bottom-4 desktop:margin-bottom-0 desktop:padding-right-3\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/glenn-launch-vehicle-history-2\/\" class=\"color-carbon-black\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"hds-cover-wrapper cover-hover-zoom bg-carbon-black minh-mobile\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"hds-media-background  \"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"240\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/titan-iv-full.jpg?w=240\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium\" alt=\"\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/titan-iv-full.jpg 1675w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/titan-iv-full.jpg?resize=240,300 240w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/titan-iv-full.jpg?resize=768,962 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/titan-iv-full.jpg?resize=818,1024 818w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/titan-iv-full.jpg?resize=1226,1536 1226w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/titan-iv-full.jpg?resize=1635,2048 1635w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/titan-iv-full.jpg?resize=319,400 319w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/titan-iv-full.jpg?resize=479,600 479w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/titan-iv-full.jpg?resize=719,900 719w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/titan-iv-full.jpg?resize=958,1200 958w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/titan-iv-full.jpg?resize=1597,2000 1597w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 240px) 100vw, 240px\" \/><\/figure>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"padding-right-0 desktop:padding-right-10\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"subheading margin-bottom-1\">2 min read<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-1\"><h3 class=\"related-article-title\">Glenn Launch Vehicle History<\/h3><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"display-flex flex-align-center label related-article-label margin-bottom-1 color-carbon-60\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"display-flex flex-align-center margin-right-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg version=\"1.1\" class=\"square-2 margin-right-1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\" x=\"0px\" y=\"0px\" width=\"16px\" height=\"16px\" viewBox=\"0 0 16 16\" style=\"enable-background:new 0 0 16 16;\" xml:space=\"preserve\"><g><g><path d=\"M8,0C3.5,0-0.1,3.7,0,8.2C0.1,12.5,3.6,16,8,16c4.4,0,8-3.6,8-8C16,3.5,12.4,0,8,0z M8,15.2 C4,15.2,0.8,12,0.8,8C0.8,4,4,0.8,8,0.8c3.9,0,7.2,3.2,7.2,7.1C15.2,11.9,12,15.2,8,15.2z\"\/><path d=\"M5.6,12c0.8-0.8,1.6-1.6,2.4-2.4c0.8,0.8,1.6,1.6,2.4,2.4c0-2.7,0-5.3,0-8C8.8,4,7.2,4,5.6,4 C5.6,6.7,5.6,9.3,5.6,12z\"\/><\/g><\/g><\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>Article<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t16 years ago\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid-col-12 desktop:grid-col-4 margin-bottom-4 desktop:margin-bottom-0 desktop:padding-right-3\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/centaur-launched-a-generation-of-interplanetary-missions\/\" class=\"color-carbon-black\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"hds-cover-wrapper cover-hover-zoom bg-carbon-black minh-mobile\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"hds-media-background  \"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"240\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/surveyor-1-launch.jpg?w=240\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium\" alt=\"\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/surveyor-1-launch.jpg 2400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/surveyor-1-launch.jpg?resize=240,300 240w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/surveyor-1-launch.jpg?resize=768,960 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/surveyor-1-launch.jpg?resize=819,1024 819w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/surveyor-1-launch.jpg?resize=1229,1536 1229w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/surveyor-1-launch.jpg?resize=1638,2048 1638w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/surveyor-1-launch.jpg?resize=320,400 320w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/surveyor-1-launch.jpg?resize=480,600 480w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/surveyor-1-launch.jpg?resize=720,900 720w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/surveyor-1-launch.jpg?resize=960,1200 960w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/surveyor-1-launch.jpg?resize=1600,2000 1600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 240px) 100vw, 240px\" \/><\/figure>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"padding-right-0 desktop:padding-right-10\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"subheading margin-bottom-1\">5 min read<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-1\"><h3 class=\"related-article-title\">Centaur Launched a Generation of Interplanetary Missions<\/h3><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"display-flex flex-align-center label related-article-label margin-bottom-1 color-carbon-60\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"display-flex flex-align-center margin-right-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg version=\"1.1\" class=\"square-2 margin-right-1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\" x=\"0px\" y=\"0px\" width=\"16px\" height=\"16px\" viewBox=\"0 0 16 16\" style=\"enable-background:new 0 0 16 16;\" xml:space=\"preserve\"><g><g><path d=\"M8,0C3.5,0-0.1,3.7,0,8.2C0.1,12.5,3.6,16,8,16c4.4,0,8-3.6,8-8C16,3.5,12.4,0,8,0z M8,15.2 C4,15.2,0.8,12,0.8,8C0.8,4,4,0.8,8,0.8c3.9,0,7.2,3.2,7.2,7.1C15.2,11.9,12,15.2,8,15.2z\"\/><path d=\"M5.6,12c0.8-0.8,1.6-1.6,2.4-2.4c0.8,0.8,1.6,1.6,2.4,2.4c0-2.7,0-5.3,0-8C8.8,4,7.2,4,5.6,4 C5.6,6.7,5.6,9.3,5.6,12z\"\/><\/g><\/g><\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>Article<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t11 years ago\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid-col-12 desktop:grid-col-4 margin-bottom-4 desktop:margin-bottom-0 desktop:padding-right-3\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/nasa-glenn-had-key-role-in-nasas-1997-return-to-mars-2\/\" class=\"color-carbon-black\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"hds-cover-wrapper cover-hover-zoom bg-carbon-black minh-mobile\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"hds-media-background  \"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"52\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/mars-pathfinder-presidential-panorama.jpg?w=300\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium\" alt=\"\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/mars-pathfinder-presidential-panorama.jpg 6230w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/mars-pathfinder-presidential-panorama.jpg?resize=300,52 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/mars-pathfinder-presidential-panorama.jpg?resize=768,133 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/mars-pathfinder-presidential-panorama.jpg?resize=1024,177 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/mars-pathfinder-presidential-panorama.jpg?resize=1536,266 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/mars-pathfinder-presidential-panorama.jpg?resize=2048,355 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/mars-pathfinder-presidential-panorama.jpg?resize=400,69 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/mars-pathfinder-presidential-panorama.jpg?resize=600,104 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/mars-pathfinder-presidential-panorama.jpg?resize=900,156 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/mars-pathfinder-presidential-panorama.jpg?resize=1200,208 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/mars-pathfinder-presidential-panorama.jpg?resize=2000,346 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/figure>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"padding-right-0 desktop:padding-right-10\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"subheading margin-bottom-1\">4 min read<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-1\"><h3 class=\"related-article-title\">NASA Glenn Had Key Role in NASA\u2019s 1997 Return to Mars<\/h3><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"display-flex flex-align-center label related-article-label margin-bottom-1 color-carbon-60\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"display-flex flex-align-center margin-right-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg version=\"1.1\" class=\"square-2 margin-right-1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\" x=\"0px\" y=\"0px\" width=\"16px\" height=\"16px\" viewBox=\"0 0 16 16\" style=\"enable-background:new 0 0 16 16;\" xml:space=\"preserve\"><g><g><path d=\"M8,0C3.5,0-0.1,3.7,0,8.2C0.1,12.5,3.6,16,8,16c4.4,0,8-3.6,8-8C16,3.5,12.4,0,8,0z M8,15.2 C4,15.2,0.8,12,0.8,8C0.8,4,4,0.8,8,0.8c3.9,0,7.2,3.2,7.2,7.1C15.2,11.9,12,15.2,8,15.2z\"\/><path d=\"M5.6,12c0.8-0.8,1.6-1.6,2.4-2.4c0.8,0.8,1.6,1.6,2.4,2.4c0-2.7,0-5.3,0-8C8.8,4,7.2,4,5.6,4 C5.6,6.7,5.6,9.3,5.6,12z\"\/><\/g><\/g><\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>Article<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t1 year ago\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Before Apollo missions landed on the Moon, NASA launched a series of orbiters to photographically explore the lunar surface to identify possible landing sites. On February 4, 1967*, engineers from the Lewis Research Center (now Glenn) directed the launch of Lunar Orbiter 3. The nearly nine-month mission provided NASA planners with the imagery and data [...]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":119,"featured_media":203941,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nasa_hds_core_meta_l10n":"en-US","nasa_hds_core_meta_article_editor":"119","nasa_hds_core_meta_article_contacts":[],"nasa_hds_core_meta_article_topic":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_linked_locations":["283574"],"nasa_hds_core_meta_article_related_articles":["215535","41613","284028"],"hds_migrate_meta_pr_release_id":"","hds_migrate_meta_pr_release_type":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_location_x":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_location_y":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_gallery_images":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[2671,13014,2856,2717],"news-tags":[],"internal-terms":[],"coauthors":[10218],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Lewis Launched Lunar Orbiter 3 to the Moon in the 1960s","url":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/lewis-launched-lunar-orbiter-3-to-the-moon-in-the-1960s\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/lewis-launched-lunar-orbiter-3-to-the-moon-in-the-1960s\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/el-2002-00514.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/el-2002-00514.jpg"},"articleSection":"NASA History","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Robert S. Arrighi"}],"creator":["Robert S. Arrighi"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"NASA","logo":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/themes\/nasa\/assets\/images\/nasa-logo.svg"},"keywords":["Missions","Lunar Orbiter","NASA History","Glenn History","Glenn Research Center"],"dateCreated":"2020-02-20T15:26:00Z","datePublished":"2020-02-20T15:26:00Z","dateModified":"2024-03-14T11:08:08Z"},"rendered":"<meta name=\"parsely-title\" content=\"Lewis Launched Lunar Orbiter 3 to the Moon in the 1960s\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-link\" content=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/lewis-launched-lunar-orbiter-3-to-the-moon-in-the-1960s\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-type\" content=\"post\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-image-url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/el-2002-00514.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-pub-date\" content=\"2020-02-20T15:26:00Z\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-section\" content=\"NASA History\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-tags\" content=\"Missions,Lunar Orbiter,NASA History,Glenn History,Glenn Research Center\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-author\" content=\"Robert S. Arrighi\" \/>","tracker_url":"https:\/\/cdn.parsely.com\/keys\/nasa.gov\/p.js"},"read_time":2,"time_ago":"4 years","featured_image":{"id":203941,"file":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/el-2002-00514.jpg","title":"el-2002-00514","alt":"Rocket launch at night.","caption":"The Atlas-Agena rocket launches Lunar Orbiter 3 on a mission to image the Moon\u2019s surface to determine future Apollo landing sites"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/203919"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/119"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=203919"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/203919\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":209503,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/203919\/revisions\/209503"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/203941"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=203919"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=203919"},{"taxonomy":"news-tags","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-tags?post=203919"},{"taxonomy":"internal-terms","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/internal-terms?post=203919"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=203919"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}