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SpaceShipOne first privately funded human spaceflight SpaceShipOne wins the Ansari X Prize Falcon 1 first launch Falcon 1 reaches orbit First Falcon 9 launch Dragon first mission Dragon berths with ISS Dragon berths with the ISS First successful Falcon 9 first-stage landing Reusable Falcon 9 first lands successfully First reused orbital-class booster launch Falcon Heavy launches Falcon Heavy maiden flight Crew Dragon Demo-1 launched Crew Dragon Demo-2 launched Demo-2 launches astronauts to ISS Crew-1 begins operational commercial crew service Crew-1 launched New Shepard carries first crewed mission New Shepard first human flight Inspiration4 flies all-civilian orbital mission Inspiration4 launched
Tsiolkovsky publishes early spaceflight theory Oberth publishes The Rocket into Interplanetary Space Goddard launches first liquid-fuel rocket German VfR rocket society founded Goddard begins New Mexico rocket testing First successful V-2 launch Operation Paperclip brings German rocket experts to the U.S. Bumper 2 launches from Cape Canaveral
United Nations creates COPUOS Outer Space Treaty opened for signature Rescue Agreement opened for signature Liability Convention opened for signature Registration Convention opened for signature ESA Convention enters into force Apollo-Soyuz docking Moon Agreement adopted ISS Intergovernmental Agreement signed Zarya launches for the ISS Expedition 1 arrives at the ISS Mars Express launched by ESA Huygens lands on Titan ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter launched Artemis Accords announced
Mariner 4 flies past Mars Mariner 6 flies past Mars Mariner 7 flies past Mars Mariner 9 enters orbit around Mars Mars 3 lands on Mars Mars 3 reaches Mars and lands Viking 1 lands on Mars Viking 2 lands on Mars Mars Global Surveyor launched Mars Pathfinder launched Mars Pathfinder lands with Sojourner Sojourner rover begins operations Mars Odyssey launched Mars Odyssey enters Mars orbit Mars Express launched Spirit rover launch Opportunity rover launch Mars Express enters orbit Spirit lands on Mars Opportunity lands on Mars Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter launched Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter enters orbit Phoenix launched Phoenix lands in the Martian arctic Curiosity launch Curiosity lands in Gale Crater MAVEN launched MAVEN enters Mars orbit ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter launched ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter enters orbit InSight launched InSight lands on Mars Tianwen-1 launched Perseverance launch Hope probe enters Mars orbit Tianwen-1 enters Mars orbit Perseverance lands in Jezero Crater Ingenuity makes first powered flight on another planet Zhurong rover lands on Mars
SMART-1 launched SMART-1 reaches lunar orbit Kaguya launched Chang'e 1 launched Chandrayaan-1 launched LRO and LCROSS launched LRO launched LCROSS confirms lunar water signatures LCROSS impact GRAIL-A launched GRAIL-B launched Chang'e 3 lands on Moon Chang'e 3 lands on the Moon Chang'e 4 lands on far side Chang'e 4 lands on the lunar far side Chang'e 5 launched Chang'e 5 returns lunar samples Artemis I launches Artemis I Orion flies around Moon Chandrayaan-3 launched Chandrayaan-3 lands near south polar region Chandrayaan-3 lands near the lunar south polar region SLIM launched SLIM lands on Moon SLIM lands on the Moon
Luna 2 reaches the Moon Luna 9 soft lands on the Moon Luna 10 enters lunar orbit Surveyor 1 lands on the Moon Apollo 7 first crewed Apollo mission Apollo 8 launch Apollo 8 reaches lunar orbit Apollo 8 enters lunar orbit Apollo 9 tests lunar module in Earth orbit Apollo 10 dress rehearsal in lunar orbit Apollo 10 launch Apollo 10 lunar module descends close to Moon surface Apollo 11 launch Apollo 11 lands on the Moon Apollo 12 launch Apollo 12 lands near Surveyor 3 Apollo 12 precision landing near Surveyor 3 Apollo 13 launch Apollo 13 oxygen tank explosion Luna 16 returns lunar samples Apollo 14 launch Apollo 14 lands at Fra Mauro Apollo 15 launch Apollo 15 begins extended lunar science Apollo 15 lands at Hadley-Apennine Apollo 16 launch Apollo 16 lands on the Moon Apollo 16 lands in the lunar highlands Apollo 17 launch Apollo 17 final crewed Moon landing Apollo 17 lands on the Moon Chandrayaan-1 launched Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter launched LCROSS impact at Cabeus crater Chang'e 3 lands on the Moon Yutu rover begins operations Chang'e 4 lands on the far side of the Moon Chang'e 5 returns lunar samples SLIM lands on the Moon
NASA begins operations Alan Shepard becomes first American in space John Glenn becomes first American to orbit Earth Gemini 4 conducts first American spacewalk Apollo 7 first crewed Apollo mission Apollo 8 reaches lunar orbit Apollo 11 Moon landing Apollo 13 accident Skylab launched Viking 1 lands on Mars STS-1 first Space Shuttle flight Hubble Space Telescope launched ISS assembly begins with Zarya Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter launched Juno launched Curiosity rover lands on Mars OSIRIS-REx launched Parker Solar Probe launched Perseverance rover lands on Mars Artemis I launches
Mariner 2 reaches Venus Mariner 9 maps Mars from orbit Pioneer 10 reaches Jupiter Mariner 10 reaches Mercury Viking 1 lands on Mars Pioneer Venus Orbiter launched Voyager 1 reaches Jupiter Voyager 2 reaches Jupiter Voyager 1 reaches Saturn Voyager 2 reaches Saturn Voyager 2 reaches Uranus Voyager 2 reaches Neptune Magellan begins Venus radar mapping Galileo enters orbit around Jupiter Cassini-Huygens launched NEAR Shoemaker lands on Eros Cassini enters orbit around Saturn Huygens lands on Titan MESSENGER enters Mercury orbit MESSENGER enters orbit around Mercury Dawn enters orbit around Vesta Dawn enters orbit around Ceres Juno enters Jupiter orbit Juno enters orbit around Jupiter OSIRIS-REx arrives at Bennu OSIRIS-REx collects Bennu sample
Luna 1 launched Luna 3 photographs far side of Moon Mariner 2 flies past Venus Mariner 4 flies past Mars Venera 7 lands on Venus Mariner 10 launched Pioneer 10 flies by Jupiter Mariner 10 first Mercury flyby Venera 9 returns first images from Venus surface Viking 1 lands on Mars Voyager 2 launched Voyager 1 launched Voyager 1 flies past Jupiter Voyager 2 flies past Jupiter Voyager 1 flies past Saturn Voyager 2 flies past Saturn Voyager 2 flies past Uranus Magellan launched to Venus Voyager 2 reaches Neptune Galileo launched Galileo enters orbit around Jupiter NEAR Shoemaker lands on Eros Cassini enters orbit around Saturn MESSENGER launched Dawn launched Juno launched Rosetta arrives at comet 67P Philae lands on a comet New Horizons flies past Pluto OSIRIS-REx launched Parker Solar Probe launched Lucy launched
Sputnik 1 launched Luna 2 reaches the Moon Luna 3 photographs the far side of the Moon Yuri Gagarin orbits Earth Valentina Tereshkova becomes first woman in space Voskhod 1 launches first multi-person crew Alexei Leonov performs first spacewalk Luna 9 makes first soft landing on the Moon Luna 10 becomes first lunar orbiter Luna 16 returns lunar samples Lunokhod 1 begins lunar rover operations Salyut 1 launched Mir core module launched Buran makes uncrewed orbital flight
Sputnik 1 launched Sputnik 2 launched with Laika Explorer 1 launched Vanguard 1 launched Luna 1 reaches space beyond Earth orbit Luna 3 photographs the far side of the Moon Yuri Gagarin orbits Earth Kennedy commits the U.S. to the Moon John Glenn becomes first American to orbit Earth Apollo 8 reaches lunar orbit Apollo 11 Moon landing Apollo-Soyuz docking
Salyut 1 launched Skylab launched Salyut 6 launched Mir core module launched Zarya launches for the ISS Unity joins Zarya Expedition 1 arrives at the ISS Tiangong-1 launched Tiangong-2 launched Tianhe core module launched
Uhuru launched IRAS launched Hubble Space Telescope launched Compton Gamma Ray Observatory launched Chandra X-ray Observatory launched WMAP launched Spitzer Space Telescope launched Kepler launched Planck launched WISE launched Gaia launched TESS launched James Webb Space Telescope launched James Webb begins science operations Euclid launched
Valentina Tereshkova becomes first woman in space Valentina Tereshkova launches on Vostok 6 Svetlana Savitskaya becomes second woman in space Sally Ride becomes first American woman in space Sally Ride launches on STS-7 Svetlana Savitskaya performs first woman spacewalk Kathryn Sullivan performs first American woman spacewalk Bonnie J. Dunbar begins first woman-led shuttle mission role milestone Mae Jemison becomes first African American woman in space Eileen Collins becomes first woman Space Shuttle pilot Eileen Collins pilots STS-63 Shannon Lucid begins long Mir mission Kalpana Chawla becomes first woman of Indian birth in space Eileen Collins becomes first woman Shuttle commander Eileen Collins commands STS-93 Peggy Whitson arrives for first ISS mission Peggy Whitson becomes first woman ISS commander Peggy Whitson becomes first woman to command the ISS Wang Yaping becomes first Chinese woman in space Wang Yaping launches on Shenzhou 10 First all-woman spacewalk Christina Koch completes record single mission by a woman Christina Koch sets record for longest single spaceflight by a woman Wally Funk flies on New Shepard
