Luna 1, also known as
Mechta (,
lit.:
Dream),
E-1 No.4 and
First Cosmic Ship, was the first
spacecraft to reach the vicinity of the Earth's
Moon, and the first spacecraft to be placed in
heliocentric orbit. Intended as an impactor,
Luna 1 was launched as part of the
Luna programme in 1959, however due to an incorrectly timed upper stage burn during its launch, it missed the Moon; in the process becoming the first spacecraft to leave
geocentric orbit.