Editing Luna 1 (section)

==Launch==
[[File:1959 CPA 2306.jpg|thumb|Route of Luna 1 on a Soviet stamp]]
''Luna 1'' was launched at 16:41 GMT (22:41 [[UTC+6|local time]]) on 2 January 1959 from [[Baikonur Cosmodrome Site 1|Site 1/5]] at the [[Baikonur Cosmodrome]] by a [[Luna 8K72]] rocket.{{sfn|Siddiqi|2018|p=11}} The first three stages operated nominally. The Soviet engineers did not trust automated systems for controlling the engine burns, so they communicated to the rocket via radio. The signal to stop firing the engine Block E stage was delayed,{{sfn|Reichl|2019|p=20}} and the prolonged burn imparted an extra 175&nbsp;m/s to ''Luna 1''.{{sfn|Siddiqi|2018|p=11}} 

Consequently ''Luna 1'' missed its target by {{convert|5995|km|mi|sp=us}}. The spacecraft passed within {{convert|5995|-|6400|km|sp=us}} of the Moon's surface on 4 January after 34 hours of flight, and then became the first human made object to leave Earth's orbit on January 6, 1959.<ref name=nssdc />{{sfn|Siddiqi|2018|p=11}} ''Luna 1'' ran out of battery power on 5 January, when it was {{convert|597000|km|sp=us}} from Earth, making it impossible to track further.{{sfn|Siddiqi|2018|p=11}}{{sfn|Reichl|2019|p=21}} The batteries were designed for a minimum of 40 hours but lasted for 62.{{sfn|Reichl|2019|p=21}}

''Luna 1'' became the first artificial object to reach the [[escape velocity]] of the Earth,{{sfn|Siddiqi|2018|p=1}} along with its carrier rocket's {{convert|1472|kg|adj=on}}<ref name=nssdc/> upper stage, which it separated from after being the first spacecraft to reach [[heliocentric orbit]].{{sfn|Siddiqi|2018|p=11}} It remains in orbit around the Sun, between the orbits of Earth and Mars.<ref name=nssdc>{{cite web|url=https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraft/display.action?id=1959-012A|title=Luna 1|website=NASA Space Science Data Coordinated Archive}}</ref>