Surveyor – Background

The Surveyor series of unmanned lunar landers is largely forgotten in the light of the Apollo manned lunar landings.

Nevertheless, the Surveyor Program was a key precursor to Apollo, allowing scientists to characterise the lunar surface, and to gauge its ability support a Lunar Excursion Module and astronauts in spacesuits.

Diagram of Surveyor 1 from a JPL-released set of photos. Kept by Les Whaley, scanned by Colin Mackellar. Large, Larger with explanatory text.

This engineering mockup of a (later) Surveyor hangs in the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC. Photo: Colin Mackellar.