On 1 March 1966, the Soviet Union (Russia) made a historic achievement when its spacecraft Venera 3 crash-landed on the surface of Venus, becoming the first human-made object to reach another planet.
Launched on 16 November 1965, Venera 3 was part of the Soviet Union's ambitious Venera programme aimed at exploring Venus. The spacecraft carried scientific instruments to study the planet's atmosphere and surface conditions.
Although Venera 3 successfully reached Venus, it crash-landed due to technical difficulties and was unable to transmit data back to Earth. Despite this, the mission is regarded as a milestone in space exploration, demonstrating humanity's ability to send spacecraft to other planets.
The achievement was a significant step forward in planetary science and paved the way for future missions to explore Venus and beyond. It remains a proud moment in the history of space exploration.