Under his supervision the unmanned spacecraft were developed that returned soil from the moon, placed the Lunokhod rover on the lunar surface, and landed probes on the surfaces of Mars and Venus.

Babakin completed radio specialists school in 1930 and began his career in the People's Commissariat for Communications. From 1937-1943 he was a researcher in the Community Economic Academy, and from 1943-1945 at various military research institutes. In 1949 he began working on rocket electronics and eventually moved to the Lavochkin design bureau to specialise in surface-to-air missiles. In 1957 he completed additional formal education at the All Union Electrotechnical Institute for Communications. In 1965 he was named Chief Designer for spacecraft at the Lavochkin bureau. In this position he took over all future design, development, and productionYe-8, and planetary probes were passed by Korolev to the Lavochkin Bureau, who took over responsibility for all future lunar and planetary unmanned probes.

Mishin selected as Korolev's replacement after four-month delay - .
Nation: USSR. Related Persons: Korolev; Ustinov; Mishin; Okhapkin; Keldysh; Babakin; Mozzhorin; Khrushchev. Program: Lunar L3; Lunar L1. Flight: Soyuz 1; Soyuz 2A. Spacecraft: LK; Soyuz 7K-LOK. From 1963-1965 Ustinov was both head of the Soviet for the National Economy and the First Secretary of the Presidium of Soviet Ministers. He supported civilian space projects and instructed the military to co-operate in them. But after Khrushchev was ousted, Ustinov had less influence with the Ministry of Defence.

After the death of Korolev in January, a letter was sent to the Central Committee requesting that Mishin be appointed director