Space race

1957- Soviet Union launches sputnik

Oct 4, 1957

As the tiny satellite orbited the earth, Americans reacted with distress that the Soviets could have gotten so far ahead of the supposedly technologically superior United States.

1958- U.S. launches an artificial satellite(Explorer 1)

Jan 31, 1958

The primary science instrument on Explorer 1 was a cosmic ray detector designed to measure the radiation environment in Earth orbit.

1961- First human orbits Earth (Yuri Gagarin)

Apr 12, 1961

Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin becomes the first human being to travel into space. To Soviet propagandists, the Soviet conquest of space was evidence of the supremacy of communism over capitalism

1961- First American in space (Alan Shepard)

May 5, 1961

Navy Commander Alan Bartlett Shepard Jr. is launched into space aboard the Freedom 7 space capsule, becoming the first American astronaut to travel into space.

1962- First American orbits Earth (John Glenn, Jr) Mariner 2 flies past venus

Feb 20, 1962

the United States was already a distant second in space technology, behind the Soviet Union. The race to begin to explore the universe had unofficially begun on October 4, 1957, when the Soviets launched Sputnik I, the world’s first artificial satellite.

1963- First woman in space (Valentina Tereshkova)

Jun 6, 1963

After 48 orbits and 71 hours, she returned to earth, having spent more time in space than all U.S. astronauts combined to that date.

1965- Mariner 4 space probe flies past mars

Jul 15, 1965

Mariner 4 was the fourth in a series of spacecraft used for planetary exploration in a flyby mode and represented the first successful flyby of the planet Mars, returning the first pictures of the martian surface.

1965- Mariner 4 space probe flies past mars

Jul 15, 1965

took the first photos of another planet from space.

1973- Pioneer 7 sent toward Jupiter

Aug 17, 1966

Pioneer 7 was last tracked successfully on 31 March 1995.

1969- Apollo 11 first manned moon landing

Jul 24, 1969

Apollo 11 took off from Kennedy Space Center with astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins aboard.

1970- Venera 7 lands on venus

Dec 24, 1970

The objectives of the missions were to return data from the Venus atmosphere, make a landing on the surface, and continue to return data after landing. Venera 7 was the first spacecraft to return data after landing on another planet.

Soviets build first manned space station and Mars 3 drops capsule on Mars.

Dec 2, 1971

1975- U.S. and Soviet Union launch first joint space mission

Jul 1, 1975

this mission ceremoniously marked the end of the Space Race that had begun in 1957 with the Sputnik launch.

1959- Luna 2 probe reaches the moon

Dec 24, 1978

It was the first spacecraft to reach the surface of the moon.