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submitted 2 weeks ago by SKGUnknownTV@lemmy.world to c/til@lemmy.world

The operation, known as Operation Lunik, involved CIA agents—with help from Mexican intelligence—temporarily acquiring a Soviet Luna 2 probe that was on display as part of a goodwill space exhibition.

Over the course of a single night, U.S. agents:

Transported the probe to a secure location

Disassembled and photographed its internal components

Reassembled it perfectly and returned it before morning

The Soviets never realized it had been tampered with. This mission provided valuable intelligence on Soviet space technology and contributed to U.S. advances in the early space race.

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[-] supersquirrel@sopuli.xyz 5 points 2 weeks ago

Not gonna lie, sounds exactly like the kind of paranoid, dick move the CIA would pull.

[-] shalafi@lemmy.world -2 points 2 weeks ago

Why would spying on the USSR be a dick move? Oh! You weren't alive for the Cold War? Nuclear war was a real fear, unlike today.

[-] Contentedness@lemmy.nz 3 points 2 weeks ago

Just based on the summary stealing something from a "goodwill space exhibition" is objectively a dick move. Also how a moon probe is relevant to the threat of terrestrial nuclear war is unclear to me.

[-] artifex@lemmy.zip 0 points 2 weeks ago

Thanks for posting the summary. I originally thought it was going to be something like that James Bond movie where the nose cone of the rocket opens up and “eats” the satellite.

this post was submitted on 27 Jun 2025
12 points (100.0% liked)

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