Quiz of the Day
Moon & Space
Tuesday, 2 June 2026
Surveyor 1 anniversary (1966) — Moon landings, lunar facts, the space race
1. On 2 June 1966, NASA's Surveyor 1 became the first American spacecraft to do what?
- Return lunar soil to Earth
- Orbit the Moon
- Soft-land on the Moon
- Photograph the far side of the Moon
Surveyor 1 touched down in Oceanus Procellarum (Ocean of Storms) and sent back over 11,000 photographs. It proved the lunar surface was firm enough to support a crewed lander, paving the way for Apollo.
2. How long does it take light to travel from the Moon to Earth?
- About 30 seconds
- About 1.3 seconds
- About 8 minutes
- About 5 seconds
The Moon is roughly 384,400 km away. Apollo astronauts experienced a noticeable delay in radio communications — about 2.6 seconds for a round trip — making casual conversation with Houston tricky.
3. Which Apollo mission was the first to land humans on the Moon?
- Apollo 10
- Apollo 11
- Apollo 13
- Apollo 8
Apollo 11 landed on 20 July 1969 with only about 25 seconds of fuel remaining. Neil Armstrong had to manually steer the Eagle lander past a boulder-strewn crater to find a safe spot.
4. What is the name of the dark, flat areas on the Moon visible from Earth?
- Rilles
- Highlands
- Maria (seas)
- Craters
Ancient astronomers thought these dark patches were actual oceans, hence names like Mare Tranquillitatis (Sea of Tranquillity). They are actually vast plains of solidified basaltic lava billions of years old.
5. Which country was the first to land a spacecraft on the Moon?
- Japan
- Soviet Union
- United States
- China
The Soviet Luna 9 soft-landed on the Moon on 3 February 1966 — four months before America's Surveyor 1. It transmitted the first photographs from the lunar surface, a major Cold War propaganda victory.
6. How many people have walked on the Moon in total?
- 12
- 14
- 8
- 6
All 12 moonwalkers were American men, and all visited between 1969 and 1972. Gene Cernan of Apollo 17 was the last to leave the lunar surface, tracing his daughter's initials in the dust before boarding.
7. What does the Moon lack that makes footprints last for millions of years?
- An atmosphere with wind and rain
- Gravity
- Sunlight
- Magnetic field
With no wind, rain, or tectonic activity, the bootprints left by Apollo astronauts could theoretically survive for tens of millions of years. Micrometeorite impacts will eventually erase them — very slowly.
8. What was the Space Race primarily a competition between?
- USA and China
- USA and the Soviet Union
- The Soviet Union and France
- USA and the UK
The Space Race was supercharged by Cold War rivalry. The Soviets drew first blood with Sputnik (1957) and Yuri Gagarin (1961), but the US 'won' by landing humans on the Moon in 1969.
9. Approximately how much does a person weigh on the Moon compared to Earth?
- One-third as much
- One-sixth as much
- One-tenth as much
- Half as much
The Moon's gravity is about 1.62 m/s squared versus Earth's 9.8 m/s squared. A 75 kg person would weigh just 12.5 kg on the Moon — which is why Apollo astronauts could bounce around in heavy suits.
10. What did Apollo astronauts leave on the Moon that scientists still use today?
- Laser retroreflector arrays
- Weather stations
- Seismographs that still transmit
- Radio telescopes
Scientists fire lasers from Earth at these mirror arrays and measure the reflected light. This has revealed the Moon drifts about 3.8 cm farther from Earth each year — roughly the rate your fingernails grow.
11. Which Apollo mission famously had to abort its Moon landing due to an oxygen tank explosion?
- Apollo 13
- Apollo 15
- Apollo 12
- Apollo 14
Commander Jim Lovell's famous understatement 'Houston, we've had a problem' was actually misquoted in the film as 'Houston, we have a problem.' The crew survived by using the Lunar Module as a lifeboat.
12. What is a 'supermoon'?
- A moon visible during the day
- A full moon that appears larger because it is closer to Earth in its orbit
- A moon that blocks the sun completely
- Two full moons in one month
The Moon's orbit is elliptical, so its distance from Earth varies. At perigee (closest approach), a full moon can appear up to 14% larger and 30% brighter than at apogee — though the difference is hard to spot with the naked eye.
13. What was the name of the lunar rover first used on the Moon during Apollo 15?
- Moon Buggy
- Lunar Roving Vehicle
- Lunar Explorer
- Moonwalker
The LRV was an electric vehicle that folded up like origami to fit inside the Lunar Module. It had a top speed of about 18 km/h and was essentially abandoned on the Moon — three of them are still parked there.
14. Which side of the Moon was first photographed by the Soviet Luna 3 probe in 1959?
- The north pole
- The near side
- The far side
- The south pole
The far side (often wrongly called the 'dark side') gets just as much sunlight as the near side. It looks strikingly different — almost no maria, just a battered landscape of ancient craters.
15. What was Buzz Aldrin's first words upon stepping onto the Moon?
- Magnificent desolation
- One small step for man
- We made it
- Beautiful view
While Neil Armstrong's 'one small step' line is world-famous, Aldrin's quieter 'magnificent desolation' may be the more poetic description. Aldrin later admitted he was disappointed not to be first out the door.