Space Exploration

By ZoeSepersky
  • First Observation of Space with a Telescope

    First Observation of Space with a Telescope

    Galileo observes the night sky with his homemade telescope, and discovers lunar craters, Jupiter's moons, and the phases of Venus.
  • First clear photo of the Moon

    First clear photo of the Moon

    John William Draper of the United States captures the first clear and detailed astrophotograph of another world: the Moon.

  • First Spaceflight

    Nazi Germany successfully launches the first man-made object to pass the Kármán line.
  • First US Rocket to reach the edge of space

    First US Rocket to reach the edge of space

    The scientists of WAC Corporal successfully designs a rocket that reaches the edge of space (49 miles.)

  • First Animal in Orbit

    The USSR launches the dog Laika into orbit on Nikita Khrushchev and Sergey Korolev's Sputnik 2.
  • First Photo of Earth from Space

    First Photo of Earth from Space

    NASA's satellite Explorer 6 captures the first photographs of Earth while in orbit.

  • First human in space

    Yuridia Gagarin on Vostok 1 becomes the first human to fly into space.

  • First complete human spaceflight

    Alan Shepard lands the Freedom 7 while still in the craft, therefore the first complete spaceflight by FAI definitions.
  • First Human on the Moon

    First Human on the Moon

    Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrian become the first humans to set foot on the moon. The first samples from the moon were also returned.
  • First Photograph of Venus from Space

    First Photograph of Venus from Space

    The US's Mariner 10 did a flyby of Venus at 5768 km, and took the first photos of Venus from Space.
  • First Samples from Mars

    First Samples from Mars

    The Viking Lander took the first samples and photos from the surface of Mars.
  • First Photograph of the whole Solar System

    First Photograph of the whole Solar System

    NASA's Voyager 1 takes the first "photo" of the whole solar system. The photo is a mosaic of 60 individual frames.

  • The Hubble is launched

    The Hubble Space Telescope is launched into low earth orbit.
  • ISS is launched

    ISS is launched

    The International Space Station becomes the first multinational space station and the largest man-made object built in space to date.

  • First man made probe in interstellar space

    The Voyager 1 after 30+ years of being in space, exists the solar system into interstellar space.
  • James Webb Telescope

    James Webb Telescope

    The James Webb Telescope is part of NASA's Next Generation program, and will be located at the Earth-Sun L2 langarian point.
    It is the scientific successor to the Hubble, not the replacement as the capabilities will be different.