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Soviet Union launches Sputnik up into orbit.
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U.S. launches Explorer 1 that not only reached orbit but also managed to gather useful scientific data.
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Soviets send up Luna 1 to reach the moon, however the target is missed. It became the first to fly beyond Earth's orbit and the first to orbit the sun.
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United States launched Pioneer 4 toward the moon, but it too missed and fell into solar orbit
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Soviets send up Luna 2, the first spacecraft to reach the surface of the Moon.
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Soviets send up Luna 3, the first-ever mission to photograph the far side of the Moon.
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Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin flew into orbit with the Vostok 1 and became the first man in space
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The United States announced plans to build the Manned Orbiting Laboratory, a military space station designated for scientific research.
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Neil Armstrong and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin were the first Americans to set foot on the moon on Apollo 11.
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Skylab was a space station launched and operated by NASA and was the United States' first space station.
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The Apollo–Soyuz Test Project was the first joint U.S.–Soviet space flight, and the last flight of an Apollo spacecraft.
