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Earl Green is the creator, curator, and head writer of theLogBook.com.

Zond 8

Zond 8The Soviet Union launches Zond 8, the final Zond flight and the final flight of the Soyuz 7K-L1 capsule which was intended to be the command & service module of the Soviet manned lunar effort. Again, the vehicle orbits the moon and returns to Earth unmanned after a week in space. For only the second time, the 7K-L1 vehicle performs every phase of the flight flawlessly – though the Soviet Union, trying to downplay the space race, now retroactively denies that it was ever interested in sending men to the moon.

Luna 17 and Lunokhod 1

Luna 17The Soviet Union launches unmanned space probe Luna 17 toward the moon, carrying with it the first automated moon rover, Lunokhod 1. Solar-powered and deployed to the surface via a pair of ramps, the wheeled rover operates for eleven months, more than double the expected operational life span. Unlike Luna 16, Luna 17 and Lunokhod perform their studies of the lunar surface without returning any soil samples to Earth.

The Move: Looking On

Escape From The Planet Of The ApesFly Records releases the third album by Birmingham rock group The Move, Looking On. The group sports an elegant, elaborate new sound on this outing, having recruited budding songwriter/performer Jeff Lynne from another local band, the Idle Race. Lynne’s interaction with Move frontman Roy Wood will lead to the formation, a year later, of the Electric Light Orchestra. Read more

NOAA-1

NOAA / ESSA satellite seriesNASA and the newly-rechristened National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (formerly ESSA) launch NOAA-1, a weather satellite intended to operate in a near-polar low Earth orbit. Equipped with four cameras, NOAA-1 will operate in orbit for nearly a year before it begins suffering equipment malfunctions. Overheating in the spacecraft’s attitude control system forces ground controllers to turn off some of its weather sensing equipment, and NOAA-1 will eventually be shut down in August 1971.

Doctor Who: Terror Of The Autons, Part 1

Doctor WhoThe 279th episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1. Katy Manning makes her first appearance as the Doctor’s new companion, Jo Grant. Richard Franklin joins the cast as new UNIT regular Captain Mike Yates, and the Master makes his first appearance in the series, as played by Roger Delgado. Michael Wisher guest stars. Read more

Rod Serling’s Night Gallery: Episode 4

Night GalleryNBC premieres the fourth episode of Rod Serling’s Night Gallery, an anthology series of original short plays and short story adaptations hosted by Serling himself. Tom Bosley (Happy Days) and Herb Jefferson Jr. (Battlestar Galactica) guest star; the first segment is one of the earliest professional directing credits for a young Steven Spielberg. Read more