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The first telescope to look into the night sky
Astronomer Galileo Galilei used a telescope to look into the night sky. He observed Jupiter's moons, lunar craters and the phases of Venus. -
Goddard's Rocket Patents
U.S. rocket scientist Robert H. Goddard receives two patents for rockets. The first was for a multi-stage rocket and the second was for a rocket fueled with gasoline and liquid nitrous oxide. These two patents would become major milestones in the history of rocketry. -
First liquid fuel rocket launched
U.S. rocket scientist Robert H. Goddard launches the first liquid fueled rocket from his Aunt Effie's farm in Auburn, Massachusetts. The 4-foot high rocket named "Nell" reaches an height of 41 feet and flys at a speed of 60 miles per hour. The rocket only flys for 2 1/2 seconds, but paves the way for the U.S. rocket program. -
First Suborbital Flight
After two failures, Germany successfully launches their V-2 rocket. It is the first man-made object to achieve sub-orbital spaceflight, reaching an altitude of 100 km (62 miles). The V-2 is what all of modern rockets use including the U.S. Apollo program's Saturn V moon rocket. -
First artificial satellite
The USSR beat the United States into space by launching Sputnik 1. At 184 pounds, it was the world's first artificial satellite. Sputnik transmitted radio signals back to Earth for only a short time, but it was a major accomplishment. -
First man in space
Russian Cosmonaut Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin became the first human to venture into space. The Vostok 1 spacecraft made one complete orbit around Earth in 108 minutes, and reached altitudes of 112 to 203 miles. The flight lasted only one hour and 48 minutes. -
President Kennedy's Historic Speech
President John F. Kennedy made a historic speech to Congress. He challenged the nation to land "a man on the Moon and return him safely to Earth" before the end of the decade. -
First U.S. Space Tragedy
During a routine test of the Apollo 1 spacecraft on the launch pad, a spark caused a fire to start in the crew compartment of the command module. Gus Grissom, Ed White, and Roger Chaffee, were killed in this tragic incident. It was later determined that faulty wiring caused the spark, and the pure oxygen environment in the capsule was to blame for the rapid spreading of the blaze. -
First Manned Moon Landing
Apollo 11 makes the first successful soft landing on the Moon. Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin, Jr. become the first human beings to set foot on another world. Many experts still consider this to be the single greatest technological achievement of 20th century. -
First Space Station
The Salyut 1 space station is launched by the Soviet Union and become the first space station in orbit. It remains in orbit until May 28, 1973. -
First Space Shuttle Launch
The first manned mission of the Space Transportation System (STS-1) Columbia is launched. This mission and the next three, will be a test flight to try out the spacecraft's systems. -
First ISS Module Launched
A Russian Proton rocket is launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome on the steppes of the Asian nation of Kazakstan. This rocket carries the Russian-built Zarya Control Module, the first component what will be the new International Space Station (ISS). -
Space Shuttle Columbia Disaster
The space shuttle Columbia breaks up in the atmosphere over Texas while returning to the Kennedy space center. Columbia was the first space shuttle to fly and this is her 28th mission. Investigations conclude that a piece of foam from the fuel tank broke off during launch and punctured the orbiter's left wing. This hole in the wing allowed hot gases to enter during reentry, causing the orbiter lose control and break up while traveling over 13,000 miles per hour. -
Largest Space Telescope Launched
Russia launches the Spektr-R which becomes largest space telescope to be placed into orbit. Spektr-R is a radio telescope designed to study astronomical objects with an angular resolution up to a few millionths of an arcsecond. The telescope is intended for radio-astrophysical observations of extragalactic objects with ultra-high resolution. At launch, the giant telescope weighed 11,000 pounds (5,000 kilograms).
