The Most Important Events in Space

First Telescopic Observation of the Night Sky

Jan 1, 1610

Discovery of Jupiter's moons, lunar craters and the phases of Venus.

First Image of the Moon

Jan 1, 1840

First clear telescopic photograph of another world: The Moon

First Liquid Fueled Rocket

Mar 16, 1926

Goddard launches the first liquid-fueled rocket

First Rocket to Edge of Space

May 22, 1946

First U.S.-designed rocket to reach edge of space (80 km (49 mi))

First Artificial Satelite and Space Signals

Oct 4, 1957

First artificial satellite
First signals from space

First Human Piloted Space Flight

May 5, 1961

First human-piloted space flight–(Alan Shepard)
First human-crewed suborbital flight
First human space mission that landed with pilot still in spacecraft, thus technically completing the first complete human spaceflight[2]

First Man on the Moon

Jul 20, 1969

First humans on the moon. Niel Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin were the first men to step on the Moon.

First Soft Landing on Another Planet

Dec 15, 1970

First soft landing on another planet (Venus)
First signals from another planet

US First to Maintain Orbit Around Another Planet

Nov 14, 1971

First to maintain orbit around another planet (Mars)

First Mission to Leave Inner Solar System

Jul 15, 1972

First mission to enter the asteroid belt and leave inner Solar System

Hubble Space Telescope

Apr 24, 1990

The telescope Hubble was put into orbit.

First Operational Rover

Jul 4, 1997

First operational rover on another planet (Mars)

First Detailed Study of an Asteroid

Feb 14, 2000

A yearlong mission to study the gravity and composition of Eros.

First Space Craft to Orbit a Dwarf Planet

Mar 6, 2015

Dawn spacecraft orbits the dwarf planet Ceres.

Longest Space Mission

Mar 1, 2016

Astronaut Scott Kelly and Cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko return to Earth after their 340-day space mission, longest recorded time in space for ISS crew members.