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The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is formed, it replaces the National Advisory Committee on Aeronautics (NACA).
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Luna 1 is launched by the USSR. It is the first man made object to orbit the Sun.
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The "Mercury Seven" astronauts are selected by NASA.
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President John F. Kennedy addresses Congress and challenges the nation to go to the Moon before the end of the decade.
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Cosmonaut Valentia Tereshkova becomes the first woman in space.
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President Kennedy is assassinated.
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Mariner 4 returns close ranger images of Mars.
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Luna 10 becomes the first satellite to orbit the Moon.
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Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, the first man in space, dies in a plane crash.
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Neil Armstrong and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin become the first men to walk on the Moon while crewmate Michael Collins orbits around the Moon alone.
