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1941 - On January 23,
NASA breaks ground on the Aircraft Engine Research Laboratory (AERL). -
1957 October 4
The Soviet Union launched the first satellite, Sputnik, into space. -
1960 August 19
The Soviet craft Sputnik 5 was launched, carrying the dogs Strelka and Belka. They became the first living beings to survive a trip into space. -
1961 April 12
Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first human in space. -
1962 February 20
Astronaut John Glenn became the first American in orbit. -
1965 March 18
While tethered to his spacecraft, cosmonaut Alexi Leonov became the first man to walk in space. -
1966 February 3
The Russian spacecraft Luna 9 became the first spacecraft to land on the moon. -
1967 January 27
Astronauts Gus Grissom, Ed White, and Roger Chaffee were killed in an accidental fire in a command module on the launch pad. -
1968 September 15
The Soviet spacecraft Zond 5 was launched and later became the first spacecraft to orbit the moon and return to Earth. -
1969 July 20
Neil Armstrong and "Buzz" Aldrin became the first men on the moon. -
1970 April 11
Apollo 13 was launched. -
1971 April 19
The Soviet space station Salyut 1 was launched. -
1972 December 11
Eugene Cernan and Harrison "Jack" Schmitt became the last men to walk on the moon. -
1958 January 31
Explorer 1 was the first satellite launched by the United States when it was sent into orbit on January 31, 1958. It was designed and built by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) of the California Institute of Technology. The satellite was sent aloft from Cape Canaveral in Florida by the Jupiter C rocket that was designed, built, and launched by the Army Ballistic Missile Agency (ABMA) under the direction of Dr. Wernher Von Braun.
