Luna 9 made the first successful soft landing on the Moon in 1966.
The Soviet spacecraft landed in the Oceanus Procellarum on February 3, 1966. Unlike an impact probe, Luna 9 descended gently and survived contact with the lunar surface. It then transmitted panoramic photographs and scientific measurements back to Earth.
The mission settled an important engineering and scientific question: the Moon’s surface was firm enough to support a spacecraft rather than being covered by a deep layer of dust into which a lander would sink. Luna 9 used airbags during its final descent and deployed a small instrumented station after landing.
Luna 2 had achieved the first impact on the Moon in 1959, but it was destroyed on arrival. The United States followed with Surveyor 1, its first soft lunar landing, later in 1966. Luna 9 therefore holds the first successful soft-landing record.