Space Race

First Satellite in Space by the USSR

Oct 4, 1957

Sputnik 1 was the first artificially made satellite placed in the orbit of the Earth and it sent signals back to the planet before the short lives of it's 3 batteries ran out.

First Animal in Space by the USSR

Nov 3, 1957

The USSR launched a dog named Laika into orbit, making her the first animal from Earth to be in space. Laika died during re-entry to the planet.

First Satellite in Space by the USA

Jan 31, 1958

The first US satellite was Explorer 1 and it was also the first satellite to carry scientific tools and devices. It was a large success, remaining in orbit for over 12 years, even after it's batteries had died.

The Creation of NASA

Jul 29, 1958

After ideas by the government had been drafted of a civilian organization leading in non-military space programs, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958, creating NASA.

First Animal in Space by the USA

Jan 31, 1961

Ham the Chimp was the first animal in space by the US and also the first great ape in space. Ham took off on a suborbital flight as part of the mission Mercury-Redstone 2. Ham did all of his tasks correctly and also survived the trip.

First Man in Space by the USSR

Apr 12, 1961

Yuri Gagarin was the first human in space and his flight orbited the Earth once before he had a computer controlled reentry.

First Man in Space by the USA

May 5, 1961

Alan Shepard was one of NASA's first astronauts and the first human sent into space by the US. He was launched in the Freedom 7 Mercury on a 15 minute suborbital flight without any errors communication-wise.

First Man to Orbit Earth by the USA

Feb 20, 1962

John Glenn was the first human by the USA to orbit the Earth. As part of the Mercury-Atlas 6, Glenn orbited the Earth 3 times and then landed in the Atlantic Ocean over the course of 4 hours and 55 minutes.

JFK's Commitment to the Moon

Sep 12, 1962

In a presidential speech to over 30,000 people, JFK announced the government's commitment to get to the Moon before 1970.

Gemini I

Apr 8, 1964

Gemini I was the first mission of Project Gemini and was used to test a modified Titan 2 launch vehicle and also to test the structure of the new Gemini spacecraft.

First Man to do an EVA by the USSR

Mar 18, 1965

Alexei Leonov was the first person to leave a space capsule and float in orbit. This was part of the Voskhod 2 mission and Leonov almost died as his suit ballooned when leaving the internal atmosphere of the spacecraft but his moonwalk lasted around 12 minutes.

Gemini III

Mar 23, 1965

Gemini III was the first time 2 people were launched into space at the same time on the same craft. It also tested the first orbit-changing maneuvers in space.

First Man to do an EVA by the USA

Jun 3, 1965

Edward H. White was the first American to perform an EVA in which he used a handheld jet-gun to move himself out of the capsule and do a space walk.

Gemini IV

Jun 3, 1965

This was the second crewed mission of Project Gemini and carried James McDivitt and Edward White. The flight orbited 62 times over the course of four days. This was also the mission that had Edward White perform the first American EVA.

Death of the Original Gemini 9 Crew

Feb 28, 1966

Elliot See and Charles Bassett got into a crash in a jet while flying over to inspect their spacecraft.

Gemini XII

Nov 11, 1966

This was the final crewed flight of Project Gemini and carried Jim Lovell and Buzz Aldrin who had to dock with a target vehicle and perform 3 EVAs.

Apollo 1

Jan 27, 1967

Originally meant to be the first test of the Apollo command and service module, the mission was ended when the crew died in a flash fire during a rehearsal. The crew featured Gus Grissom, Edward White, and Roger Chaffee.