<Tr> <Th> Impact date </Th> <Td> September 13, 1959, 21: 02: 24 (1959 - 09 - 13UTC21: 02: 25) UTC </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Impact site </Th> <Td> 29 ° 06 ′ N 0 ° 00 ′ E ﻿ / ﻿ 29.1 ° N - 0 ° E ﻿ / 29.1; - 0 </Td> </Tr> <P> Luna 2 (E-1A series) or Lunik 2 was the second of the Soviet Union's Luna programme spacecraft launched to the Moon . It was the first spacecraft to reach the surface of the Moon, and the first man - made object to land on another celestial body . On September 13, 1959, it hit the Moon's surface east of Mare Imbrium near the craters Aristides, Archimedes, and Autolycus . </P> <P> Launch was scheduled for September 9, but the Blok I core stage was shut down after it failed to reach full thrust at ignition . The booster was removed from the pad and replaced by a different vehicle, delaying the flight by three days . Luna 2, like Luna 1, took a direct path to the Moon, with a velocity high enough to result in a travel time of around 36 hours . Luna 2 hit the Moon about 800 kilometers (500 mi) from the centre of the visible disk on 1959 September 13 at 21: 02: 24 UTC . </P>

Who launched the first spacecraft to reach the lunar surface