History of Space Exploration

Sputnik 1 launched

Oct 4, 1957

First man-made object in space ever. Launched by Soviet Union. (USSR) Burned up in atmosphere on Jan. 4, 1958.

Sputnik 2 launched

Nov 3, 1957

Launched by USSR, carried Laika the dog until she died after a week of orbiting Earth. The satellite burned up in the atmosphere on Apr. 14, 1958.

Explorer 1 launched

Jan 31, 1958

Launched by the US, first US satellite in space. Orbited Earth until burning up on Mar. 31, 1970.

NASA founded

Jul 20, 1958

National Areonautics and Space Administation founded by the US.

Luna 1 launched

Jan 2, 1959

Luna 1 launched by USSR. Was meant to hit the moon, but missed and is now orbiting the Sun. Contact was lost on Jan. 5, 1959.

Luna 2 launched

Sep 12, 1959

Launched by USSR. First man-made object to hit the Moon. Luna 2 landed on the moon on Sep. 13, 1959.

Tiros 1 launched

Apr 1, 1960

Launched by US, first weather satellite ever. It stayed in Earth orbit until June 17, 1960. It detected a few hurricanes before they hit, saving alot of people.

Vostok 1 launched

Apr 12, 1961

Launched by USSR. Yuri Gargain was aboard, and orbited the Earth once. He was the first man in space.

U.S. Mariner 2 launched

Aug 27, 1962

Launched by US. First planet flyby ever, went to Venus before orbiting the sun. Flew by Venus on December 14, 1962.

Voskhod 2 launched

Mar 18, 1965

Launched by USSR, Alexei Leonov makes first spacewalk. It was 12 minutes long.

Venera 3 launched

Nov 16, 1965

Launched by USSR, Venera 3 was the first spacecraft to land on another planet. It reached Venus on March 1st, 1966, but fails to send data. Venera 4 does the same, but sends data back to Earth.

Luna 9 launched

Feb 3, 1966

Launched by USSR. First soft landing on the Moon, proving it was possibly to safely land there.

Apollo 8 launched

Dec 21, 1968

Launched by US. First manned mission to orbit the moon and use Saturn V rocket. Frank Borman, James Lovell Jr. and William Anders were on board.

Apollo 11 launched

Jul 16, 1969

Launched by the US, Neil Armstrong and Edwin Alrdin Jr. were the first people on the Moon. William Anders stayed in the command module. They landed on the Moon on July 20th, 1969 in the Sea of Tranquility. They landed back on Earth on July 24th, 1969 in the Pacific Ocean.

Salyut 1 launched

Apr 13, 1971

Launched by USSR. Salyut 1 was the first space station ever, but was de-orbited and burnt up in the atmosphere on October 11th, 1971 when supplies ran out while rockets were being redesigned.

Voyager 2 launched

Aug 20, 1977

Launched by US. Voyager 2 is currently the second furthest man-made object from the Sun. Voyager 1 is the furthest. Voyager 2 has not yet left the solar system. The Voyager probes are so far the only man-made objects to reach Uranus and Neptune.

Voyager 1 launched

Sep 5, 1977

Launched by US. Voyager 1 is currently the furthest man-made object from the Sun. Voyager 2 is the second furthest. Voyager 1 left the solar system for intersteller space in August 2012.

Challenger explosion

Jan 28, 1985

Space shuttle built by US. The space shuttle Challenger explodes on re-entry, killing the crew. This was because of a piece of foam falling off the shuttle and hitting its wing, damaging it.

Hubble telescope launched

Apr 24, 1990

Launched by US. One of the most famous telescopes ever built. It is still in use today in Earth orbit.

Zarya (ISS) launched

Nov 20, 1998

Launched by Russia. It was the first part of the International Space Station. The ISS was not safe for people until 2000, and was not finished until 2011 with help from alot of different countries.