NASA timeline By Ethan502 Oct 1, 1954 NASA was founded. Period: Oct 1, 1954 to Jan 1, 2012 NASA timeline Jan 31, 1961 NASA launched the first chimpanzee, named Ham, into space. Jul 20, 1969 Neil Armstrong was the first man to walk on the moon. Apr 12, 1981 NASA launched the very first space shuttle into space. NASA launched the first successfull space shuttle. Nov 26, 2011 NASA launched the first Mars rover, Curiosity, in 4 years.