Launch Partial Failure
Liftoff Time (GMT)
20:30:00
Friday January 26, 1962
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Failure of both the Atlas and Agena guidance systems; probe sent on an incorrect trajectory.
Ranger 3 was a space exploration mission conducted by NASA to study the Moon. The Ranger 3 robotic spacecraft was launched on January 26, 1962, as part of the Ranger program. Due to a series of malfunctions, the spacecraft missed the Moon by 22,000 mi (35,000 km) and entered a heliocentric orbit.
Trans Lunar Injection
1 Payload
330 kilograms
12th
Mission
1st
Mission of 1962
3rd
Orbital launch attempt