On June 2, 1966, NASA's Surveyor 1 landed on the lunar surface to become the first American spacecraft to land on the moon. Surveyor 1 took more than 11,000 photos of the moon along with other measurements, but, more importantly, proved that NASA's soft-landing technique and spacecraft designs were sound. | Space.com

What wonders can we find when we explore Other Worlds? Join NASA's James Webb Space Telescope researchers as they turn the largest space telescope on to planets and moons in our own solar system, unfurling mysteries beyond Earth. Stream Other Worlds: https://plus.nasa.gov/series/other-worlds/ | NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center

A critical element of spacecraft design and mission planning is maximizing propulsion system efficiency, particularly for more ambitious missions. To accomplish this, NASA employs gravity assists, also known as a gravitational slingshot or flyby. Every planet in our solar system has a unique orbital speed as it travels around the Sun. When a spacecraft approaches a planet in orbit, it's pulled into the planet's gravitational field, changing trajectory and increasingly gaining speed as it nears t