Mission Summary
Zond 5 was a historic Soviet mission that sent a spacecraft around the Moon and returned it safely to Earth. Launched on September 15, 1968, it became the first spacecraft to travel to the Moon and come back with living organisms aboard, including tortoises, plants, seeds, and microorganisms.
The spacecraft flew around the far side of the Moon on September 18, 1968, testing systems intended for possible future crewed lunar missions. After its lunar flyby, Zond 5 returned to Earth and successfully splashed down in the Indian Ocean on September 21, 1968.
The mission demonstrated that a spacecraft could complete a round trip from Earth to the Moon and survive reentry at near lunar-return speeds. Although it carried no astronauts, Zond 5 was a major achievement in the Space Race and showed that the Soviet Union was making progress toward human lunar flight.
Sources and notes can be found on the Sources page.
