On November 17, 1970, Lunokhod 1 (Луноход, which is 'moon walker' in Russian) landed in the Sea of Rains on the moon. It is the first lunar rover to explore the moon's surface. It was launched on November 10 and carried into lunar orbit by Luna 17 spacecraft.
Lunokhod 1 would run during the lunar day, using solar panels to power it, and then hibernate at night. It had a radioactive source to keep its instruments heated during the lunar night.
It operated for almost a year, the last communication received September 14, 1971. The Soviets finally ended the project October 4, the anniversary of Sputnik 1. Lunokhod 1 travelled about 6 1/2 miles, returned more than 20,000 TV images, 206 high-resolution panoramas, and performed 25 lunar soil analyses.
Lunokhod 1's final resting spot was unknown until April 2010, when a team from University of California at San Diego located it and is being used for determining Earth-Moon aspects.
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