OrbitingTruths Archive
The PlacesBehind the Missions
Every launch pad and lunar landing site in the archive, and every mission connected to it.
6
Lunar sites
10
Launch sites
On the Moon
Lunar landing sites
Mare Tranquillitatis
Sea of Tranquility, the Moon
The site of humanity's first Moon landing. Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin touched down here aboard the Lunar Module Eagle on July 20, 1969, spending over twenty-one hours on the surface.
Oceanus Procellarum
Ocean of Storms, the Moon
The Moon's largest mare, and the site of the first precision Apollo landing. Apollo 12 touched down within walking distance of the robotic Surveyor 3 probe, which had landed there in 1967.
Fra Mauro Highlands
Central lunar highlands, the Moon
A rugged highland region targeted by two Apollo missions. Apollo 13 was forced to abort before reaching it after an oxygen tank explosion crippled the spacecraft; Apollo 14 successfully landed here ten months later, completing the mission Apollo 13 never finished.
Hadley–Apennine
Edge of Mare Imbrium, the Moon
A dramatic site at the foot of the lunar Apennine Mountains, beside the Hadley Rille canyon. Apollo 15 landed here, the first mission to carry the Lunar Roving Vehicle.
Descartes Highlands
Central lunar highlands, the Moon
An ancient highland region chosen specifically because it did not resemble a mare. Apollo 16 landed here, the only Apollo mission to explore terrain unrelated to a lunar sea.
Taurus–Littrow Valley
Edge of Mare Serenitatis, the Moon
A geologically diverse valley on the edge of Mare Serenitatis. Apollo 17, the final crewed lunar landing, spent the longest surface stay of the program exploring this site.
On Earth
Launch sites
Launch Complex 39A
Kennedy Space Center, Florida
The most historic launch pad in spaceflight history. Every crewed Saturn V Moon mission, the first and final Space Shuttle flights, and modern commercial crew launches have all lifted off from Pad A.
Launch Complex 19
Cape Canaveral, Florida
The pad used for every crewed Gemini-Titan launch, sending ten two-person crews into orbit to develop the rendezvous and spacewalk techniques Apollo would depend on.
Launch Complex 39B
Kennedy Space Center, Florida
Pad 39A's sister pad, used for later Apollo and Space Shuttle missions and now the launch site for NASA's Artemis Moon program.
Launch Complex 14
Cape Canaveral, Florida
The pad that launched every orbital Mercury-Atlas mission, sending the first Americans, including John Glenn, into orbit around Earth.
Baikonur Cosmodrome
Kazakhstan
The Russian launch site that sent the International Space Station's first modules and first resident crew into orbit, beginning more than two decades of continuous human presence in space.
Launch Complex 5
Cape Canaveral, Florida
A modest pad used to launch the Redstone rockets that carried NASA's first two astronauts on suborbital flights at the dawn of Project Mercury.
Launch Complex 34
Cape Canaveral, Florida
The pad where the Apollo 1 fire claimed three astronauts' lives during a launch rehearsal, and where, nearly two years later, Apollo 7 lifted off to prove the redesigned spacecraft was safe.
Launch Complex 37B
Cape Canaveral, Florida
A Saturn IB pad used for uncrewed Apollo hardware testing, including the first flight of the Lunar Module.
Space Launch Complex 40
Cape Canaveral, Florida
A Cape Canaveral pad leased by SpaceX, used to launch commercial cargo missions to the International Space Station.
Kennedy Space Center
Merritt Island, Florida
NASA's primary launch site for human spaceflight, home to Launch Complex 39 and the agency's current and future crewed missions.
Continue exploring
Follow the story outward
The interactive map
Moon Explorer
See every lunar landing site plotted on the Moon itself.
The chronology
Timeline
See where these places fit alongside every mission in the archive.
The full archive
Missions
Search, filter, and browse every mission record in detail.