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Launch of Sputnik.
The launch of the Sputnik I spurredthe US to launchits own satellies and begin space exploration in earnest. It also marked
the beginning of the competition between the US and
the USSR to have dominance in space. -
Explorer 1, the first American satellite to reach orbit, is launched. It carried scientificequipment that lead to the discovery of the Van Allen radiation belt.
It was the first thing America did when they joined the
Space Race. -
NASA is formed, it replaces the NACA.
The agency that pushed the frountiers of aeronautics, took us to the moon, flew the space shuttle, built the International space station
and revealed the secrets of the cosmos,wasin its birth throes, and fundamental decisions were being made that profoundly shaped all that was to come. -
The "Mercury Seven" astronautsare selected by NASA.
The Mercury Seven were the group of Seven Mercury
astronauts selected by NASA on April 9,1959.
they are also referred to as the Original Seven or
Astronaut Group 1. -
Tiros 1, the first successful weather satellite is launched.
objectives: To test experimental television techniques
designed to develop a worldwide meteorological satellite
info system. To test saun angle and horizon sensor systems
for spacecraft orientation. -
Alan B. shepard becomes the first American in space.
Alan Shepard became the first American in space when the Freedom 7 spacecraft blasted off from Florida on May 5, 1961. Ten years later, Shepard would leave Earth's atmosphere again to become the fifth man to walk on the moon — and the first one to play golf there. -
John Glenn orbits the Earththree times.
On February 20, 1962, NASA launched one of the most important flights in American history. The mission? Send a man to orbit Earth, observe his reactions and return him home safely. The pilot of this historic flight, John Glenn, became a national hero and a symbol of American ambition -
NASA selects its second groupof astronauts.
NASA's Astronaut Group 2, also known as The New Nine, was the second group of astronauts selected by NASA and announced on September 17, 1962. The group was required to augment the original Mercury 7 with the announcement of the Gemini program and leading to the Apollo program -
Luna 10 becomes the first satellite to orbit the moon.
The Luna 10 spacecraft was launched towards the Moon from an Earth orbiting platform on March 31, 1966. The spacecraft entered lunar orbit on April 3, 1966 and completed its first orbit 3 hours later (on April 4, Moscow time) -
Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin become the first mento walk on the moon while crewmate Michael Collins orbitaround the moon alone.
The primary objective of Apollo 11 was to complete a national goal set by President John F. Kennedy on May 25, 1961: perform a crewed lunar landing and return to Earth