60 years of Space By guya002 Jun 29, 1955 US shuttle docks with Russian space station Oct 4, 1957 Sputnik satellite blasts into space Period: Oct 4, 1957 to Jan 25, 2004 60 Years of Space Nov 3, 1957 Russians launch dog into space Dec 13, 1958 Monkey lost after space flight May 28, 1959 Monkeys survive space mission Sep 12, 1959 Soviets launch rocket at the Moon Oct 26, 1959 World glimpses far side of the Moon Mar 14, 1960 Radio telescope makes space history Jan 31, 1961 Chimp returns safely after space flight Apr 12, 1961 Soviets win space race May 5, 1961 Shepard becomes first US astronaut Feb 20, 1962 US spaceman orbits Earth Apr 26, 1962 26 Apr 1962: First US rocket lands on Moon Jun 16, 1963 Soviets launch first woman into space Mar 24, 1965 Millions watch space probe crash into Moon Aug 29, 1965 Gemini V returns to Earth Feb 3, 1966 Soviets land probe on Moon Jun 2, 1966 First US space probe lands on Moon Jan 27, 1967 Three astronauts die in Apollo 1 tragedy Apr 24, 1967 Russian cosmonaut dies in space crash May 5, 1967 First all-British satellite 'Ariel 3' launched Oct 18, 1967 Soviets glimpse beneath clouds of Venus Oct 19, 1967 US probe flies by hot and windy Venus Dec 24, 1968 First astronauts orbit Moon May 22, 1969 Apollo 10 gets bird's eye view of Moon Jul 16, 1969 16 Jul 1969: Apollo 11 takes off for the Moon Nov 19, 1969 Second Apollo mission lands on Moon Apr 14, 1970 14 Apr 1970: Critical explosion cripples Apollo 13 Sep 20, 1970 Soviet probe collects moon rock Feb 6, 1971 Man plays golf on the Moon Jun 30, 1971 Space mission ends in tragedy Aug 1, 1971 Apollo 15 finds rock from birth of Moon Nov 13, 1971 American probe orbits Mars Apr 20, 1972 Apollo 16 safely on Moon after engine crisis Dec 14, 1972 Last Moon mission returns Feb 8, 1974 Americans end outer space marathon Jul 20, 1976 Pictures of Mars from Viking ship Jul 11, 1979 Skylab tumbles back to Earth Dec 24, 1979 Europe launches first rocket Nov 12, 1980 Saturn's rings caught on film Jun 24, 1983 US astronaut Sally Ride returns Feb 20, 1986 Soviets launch space station Mir Sep 29, 1988 29 Sep 1988: Shuttle blasts US back into space Aug 25, 1989 Voyager spacecraft reaches Neptune Apr 24, 1990 Hubble telescope takes off for space Aug 10, 1990 Magellan starts mapping Venus May 18, 1991 Sharman becomes first Briton in space Feb 9, 1995 Space pioneers take first small steps Apr 6, 1997 Fault cuts short space shuttle mission Jul 6, 1997 Mars buggy starts exploring Red Planet Nov 7, 1998 Oldest astronaut back on Earth Apr 28, 2001 First space tourist blasts off Feb 1, 2003 Columbia shuttle disintegrates killing seven Oct 15, 2003 China sends first man into space Dec 25, 2003 Mars space probe disappears Jan 25, 2004 Nasa rover looks for water on Mars
