Beginning in the 1950s, the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) competed in “The Space Race,” with each country trying to outdo the other in space ! ight.
Pioneer 4 spacecraft
In a special address, American president John F. Kennedy says these famous words: “I believe itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man that this nation should commit
Astronaut John Glenn and the Mercury Friendship 7 spacecraft
US mission Apollo 11 lands on the Moon at 4:18 p.m. EST, with astronauts Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin and Neil Armstrong in the lunar module. Armstrong becomes the " rst person to walk on the Moon. July 20 1969
American astronauts Roger Chaffee, Virgil Grissom, and Edward White lose their lives in a " re during a pre ! ight test for Apollo 1. January 27 1967
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) begins
USSR cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin becomes the " rst human to orbit Earth in Vostok 3KA . April 12 1961
NASA retrieves the " rst data from another planet— Venus—from US spacecraft Mariner 2. December 14 1962
US spacecraft Mariner 9 becomes the " rst to orbit another planet, Mars. November 13 1971
The USSR launches the " rst arti " cial satellite, Sputnik 1 , into
on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth.” May 25 1961
Soviet cosmonaut Aleksey Leonov is the " rst man to walk in space. March 18 1965
US spacecraft Pioneer 10 becomes the " rst to ! y by Jupiter. December 3 1973
US spacecraft Pioneer 11 is the " rst to ! y by Saturn. September 1 1979
operations in the US. October 1 1958
Earth orbit. October 4 1957
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November 3 1957 The USSR launches the " rst animal into space, a dog named Laika.
March 3 1959 The US launches Pioneer 4 , its " rst spacecraft to escape Earth’s gravity and ! y past the Moon.
May 5 1961
February 20 1962 American astronaut John Glenn circles Earth three times in the Mercury Friendship 7 spacecraft.
June 16 1963 Soviet cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova becomes the " rst woman in space on Vostok 6 .
February 3 1966
December 24 1968 Apollo 8 becomes the " rst US mission to orbit the Moon, arriving on Christmas Eve. A message from astronauts Bill Anders, Frank Borman, and Jim Lovell is broadcast live, along with pictures of Earth and the Moon.
November 19 1969 US mission Apollo 12 is the second to land on the Moon, with astronauts Alan Bean and Pete
December 2 1971 USSR spacecraft Mars 3 becomes the " rst to soft- land on Mars.
July 17 1975 USSR and US spacecraft dock in space to carry out the " rst international space mission, the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project.
Astronaut Alan B. Shepard, Jr., becomes the " rst American in space.
USSR spacecraft Luna 9 is the " rst to soft-land on the Moon.
Conrad in the lunar module.
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