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[Ranger VIII] THE MOMENT OF FIRST IMPACT ON THE SEA OF TRANQUILITY (triptych) NASA, 20 February 1965 image 1
[Ranger VIII] THE MOMENT OF FIRST IMPACT ON THE SEA OF TRANQUILITY (triptych) NASA, 20 February 1965 image 2
[Ranger VIII] THE MOMENT OF FIRST IMPACT ON THE SEA OF TRANQUILITY (triptych) NASA, 20 February 1965 image 3
[Ranger VIII] THE MOMENT OF FIRST IMPACT ON THE SEA OF TRANQUILITY (triptych) NASA, 20 February 1965 image 4
[Ranger VIII] THE MOMENT OF FIRST IMPACT ON THE SEA OF TRANQUILITY (triptych) NASA, 20 February 1965 image 5
[Ranger VIII] THE MOMENT OF FIRST IMPACT ON THE SEA OF TRANQUILITY (triptych) NASA, 20 February 1965 image 6
[Ranger VIII] THE MOMENT OF FIRST IMPACT ON THE SEA OF TRANQUILITY (triptych) NASA, 20 February 1965 image 7
Lot 65

[Ranger VIII] THE MOMENT OF FIRST IMPACT ON THE SEA OF TRANQUILITY (triptych)
NASA, 20 February 1965

14 – 28 April 2025, 12:00 CEST
Paris, Avenue Hoche

€700 - €1,000

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[Ranger VIII] THE MOMENT OF FIRST IMPACT ON THE SEA OF TRANQUILITY (triptych)

NASA, 20 February 1965

Printed 1965.

Three vintage gelatin silver prints on fibre-based paper [NASA images 65-H-194, 65-H-195, 65-H-193].
With NASA captions numbered "65-H-194", "65-H-195", "65-H-193" on the reverses (issued by NASA Headquarters, Washington, D.C.).

Each: 20.3 x 25.4 cm. (8 x 10 in.)

Historical context
The Ranger VIII spacecraft was deliberately crashed into the Sea of Tranquillity (2.67°N, 24.65°E) at 1:57:36 a.m. EST, approximately 70 kilometres from the future Apollo 11 landing site, after successfully transmitting close-range photographs of the lunar surface during the final 23 minutes of its mission. The final images, transmitted by the crash-lander's F-A, B, and P cameras just seconds before impact, were captured from altitudes as low as 2,400 feet above the Moon. The spacecraft was destroyed upon impact, resulting in the receiver noise pattern visible in the first image.

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