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NASA is founded.
NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) is founded by President Dwight Eisenhower. -
Alan Shepard, Jr., is the first American in space.
Mercury 3, which was a 15 minute sub-orbital mission, using a Red Stone Rocket, and Alan Shepard became the first American man in space. -
Mercury 4 was the second US sub-orbital flight, with an altitude of 126 miles, flown by Gus Grisson.
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John Glenn becomes the first American to orbit Earth.
John Glenn, aboard Mercury 6, became the first American to orbit Earth. He orbited the planet three times, and became an instant hero for our country. -
Edward H. White III forms the first space walk by any American on the first Gemini.
The Gemini mission was four days long. -
Mission AS-204 manned by Grisomn, White, and Chafee, died on this day when a fire erupted in the capsule.
This mission later became known as Apollo 1 and the later missions would be numbered subsequent to the flight that never made it to space. -
Apollo 8 manned by Borman, Lovel, and Anders, orbit the moon, becoming the first men to orbit another world.
They arrived at the moon on Christmas Eve, sending images and Christmas greetings to the world. -
Apollo 11, "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."
This is what Neil Armstrong said when he became the first man on the moon. He was followed by "Buzz" Aldrin and Michael Collins. These were the first men to step foot on the lunar surface. -
Apollo 13, after unexpected delays, had an explosion on its surface module.
This led to both the oxygen tanks and electric service to fail. Lovel, Swinger, and Haise use the lunar module as a "lifeboat." They use the gravitational pull of the moon to slingshot them back to Earth successfully. -
Apollo 15 lands on the moon. It the first lunar rover.
Apollo 15 brought back some of the best samples of moon rock. -
Apollo 17 is the last Apollo mission to the moon, and the only one with a scientist.
The geologist Harrison Schmidt. -
First international human space flight with Russia.
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First reusable space vehicle, Columbia, is launched as the first space shuttle.
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Sally Ride becomes the first American woman in space.
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Guion Blueford becomes the first African-American in space.
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The space shuttle Challenger explodes 73 seconds after the launch, killing the crew of 7 people.
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The crew of the space shuttle Discovery launched the hubble space telescope into orbit.
Scientists soon discovered there was a defect in the mirror. -
The crew of the Endeavour successfully repairs the hubble space telescope.
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Sergei Kirkalev becomes the first Russian astronaut on a US space mission.
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Eilen Collins becomes the first woman pilot of an American space shuttle.
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Zarya, the first space station module, is launched, followed by Uinty two weeks later.
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15 minutes before landing the Columbia's 28th flight ends when the shuttle breaks up and burns, killing all 7 crew members.
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The rover Opportunity lands on Mars.
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The Spirit rover lands on Mars.
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The Phoenix Probe lands on Mars aiming to study water in the Martian arctic.
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Discovery launches at 4:53 p.m. for its 35th and final flight.
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Atlantis launched for the final launch of the NASA space shuttle program.
