Luna 3

Luna 3 was a Soviet automatic spacecraft that photographed the Moon’s far side in October 1959, revealing terrain never previously seen from Earth.

Lunar flyby: A spacecraft passage close to the Moon without entering orbit or landing. Luna 3 swung around the Moon to image its far side before heading back toward Earth.
Soviet space program: The state-directed spaceflight effort of the Soviet Union from the 1950s until its dissolution. It developed, launched, and operated Luna 3.
Far side of the Moon: The hemisphere of the Moon that always faces away from Earth because the Moon is tidally locked. Luna 3 returned the first images of this previously unseen hemisphere.
Luna 3 photographs: The first photographs of the Moon's far side, taken by Luna 3 in 1959. These images are the mission's defining scientific result.
Lunar orbit: The path of an object traveling around the Moon under lunar gravity. Unlike a lunar orbiter, Luna 3 photographed the far side during a flyby.
Luna program: A Soviet series of robotic missions that explored the Moon from 1959 onward. Luna 3 was an early mission in this broader lunar exploration program.
Lunar cartography: The mapping and naming of features on the Moon's surface. Luna 3's images enabled the first maps of the far side.
Soviet lunar missions: Robotic Soviet spacecraft missions sent to study or reach the Moon. Luna 3 was an early example of this sustained lunar exploration effort.
Phototelemetry: The transmission of images by converting them into signals sent over a communications link. Luna 3 scanned film images and radioed the resulting signals to Earth.
Sputnik 1: The first artificial Earth satellite, launched by the Soviet Union in 1957. Its success helped establish the Soviet capability and context behind Luna 3.

Linked from 4 pages