Space Race

USSR

Oct 4, 1957

Launch Sputnik 1

USSR

Nov 4, 1957

Launch Sputnik 2 which carrys a dog into orbit

U.S.

Jan 31, 1958

Explorer 1 first American satellite to reach orbit

U.S.

Mar 5, 1958

Explorer 2 is launched but fails to reach orbit.

U.S.

Mar 17, 1958

Vanguard 1 satellite launched it orbits for 3 years

USSR

May 15, 1958

Sputnik 3 launched

U.S.

Oct 1, 1958

NASA is formed and replaces NACA

U.S.

Oct 11, 1958

Pioneer 1 go's up 70,700 miles

USSR

Jan 2, 1959

Luna 1 first to orbit the sun

U.S.

Mar 3, 1959

Pioneer 4 launched 37,00 miles from the moon before going into solar orbit

U.S.

Apr 2, 1959

Mercury seven astronauts picked

USSR

Sep 13, 1959

Luna 2 first man made object to come in contact with the moon

USSR

Sep 13, 1959

Luna 2 first man made object to come in contact with the moon

USSR

Oct 4, 1959

Luna 3 takes pictures of 70% of the moon

U.S.

Apr 1, 1960

Tiros 1 first successful weather satellite

U.S.

Aug 18, 1960

Discoverer XIV first camera equipped with a spy satellite

U.S.

Nov 8, 1960

John F. Kennedy is elected the 35th president

USSR

Apr 12, 1961

Yuri Gagarin is the first man in space

U.S.

May 5, 1961

Alan B Shepard is the first american in space

U.S.

May 25, 1961

JFK says we need to go to the moon before the end of the decade

U.S.

Jul 21, 1961

Liberty Bell capsule lost when it fills with water and sinks

USSR

Aug 6, 1961

German Titov spends a day in space

U.S.

Dec 7, 1961

NASA announces Gemini Project

U.S.

Feb 20, 1962

Jenn Glenn orbits Earth 3 times

U.S.

Sep 12, 1962

JFK gives a speech talking about the importance of the moon program

U.S.

Sep 17, 1962

NASA selects second group of astronauts

U.S.

Oct 3, 1962

Walter Schirra orbits Earth 6 times

U.S.

Dec 14, 1962

Mariner 2 flies past Venus and enters solar orbit

U.S.

May 15, 1963

L. Gordon Cooper spends 34 hours in space and is the last man in space alone

USSR

Jun 16, 1963

Valentia Tereshkova is the first woman in space

USSR

Jun 16, 1963

Valentia Tereshkova is the first woman in space

U.S.

Oct 17, 1963

NASA picks the 3rd group of astronauts

U.S.

Nov 22, 1963

JFK is assassinated

U.S.

Jul 31, 1964

Range 7 gets the first close images of the moon

USSR

Mar 18, 1965

Alexei Leonov is the first person to space walk

U.S.

Mar 23, 1965

Gus Grissom and John Young fly the first manned Gemini spacecraft

U.S.

Jun 3, 1965

Ed White performs first american spacewalk

U.S.

Jul 14, 1965

Mariner 4 takes close range images of Mars

USSR

Nov 16, 1965

Venus 3 launches

U.S.

Dec 4, 1965

Frank Borman and James Lovell start a two week orbit around Earth on board of Gemini 7

U.S.

Dec 15, 1965

Gemini 6 makes first space rendezvous to Gemini 7

USSR

Feb 3, 1966

Luna 9 first spacecraft to soft land on the moon

USSR

Apr 3, 1966

Luna 10 first to orbit the moon

U.S.

Nov 11, 1966

Lunar Orbiter orbits around the moon and takes first picture of Earth from that distance

U.S.

Nov 11, 1966

Gemini 12 launches with James Lovell and Buzz Aldrin

U.S.

Jan 27, 1967

Gus Grissom, Ed White, and Roger Chaffee killed when fire ignites in Apollo 1

USSR

Apr 24, 1967

Vladimir Komarov is killed when a parachute fails to open

U.S.

Oct 18, 1967

Venera 4 collects data about the atmosphere of Venus

USSR

Sep 15, 1968

Zond 5 is launched

U.S.

Oct 11, 1968

Apollo 7 starts a 10 day mission to study a new spacecraft

USSR

Jan 16, 1969

Soyuz 4 & 5 make the first Soviet docking

U.S.

Jul 20, 1969

Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin are the first men to walk on the moon. Michael Collins orbits around the moon alone

U.S.

Nov 19, 1969

Pete Conrad and Alan Bean perform first lunar landing