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OTD In Space - June 4: Falcon 9 Rocket Reaches Orbit
On June 4, 2010, the first Falcon 9 rocket built by SpaceX blasted off from Cape Canaveral on its maiden voyage and reached orbit. Space Exploration Technologies, or Space X, was founded by billionaire Elon Musk, an internet entrepreneur...
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OTD In Space - June 3: First American Spacewalk
On June 3, 1965, NASA astronaut Ed White became the first American to walk in space. White left the safety of his Gemini 4 spacecraft equipped with a spacesuit, a tether and a small gas gun for maneuvering. The spacewalk occurred just...
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OTD In Space - June 2: First American Spacecraft On The Moon
On June 2, 1966, NASA's Surveyor 1 landed on the lunar surface to become the first American spacecraft to land on the moon. Surveyor 1 took more than 11,000 photos of the moon along with other measurements, but, more importantly, proved...
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OTD In Space - June 1: Endeavour’s Final Touchdown
On June 1, 2011, NASA's space shuttle Endeavor touched down safely for the final time at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida after spending 299 days in space throughout the course of its 25 flights. Endeavour was built as a replacement...
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Born To Be In Space - Astronaut Don Pettit Highlights Amazing Space Station Science Mission
NASA astronaut Don Pettit is scheduled to return to Earth from the International Space Station, completing his 4th mission to the orbital outpost. See some of the science he conducted and photography he captured. Credit: NASA
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OTD In Space - May 28: Able And Baker Become 1st Monkeys To Survive Spaceflight
On May 28, 1959, two monkeys named Able and Baker became the first monkeys to go to space and make it back alive. Miss Able was a rhesus monkey from Kansas, and her crewmate Miss Baker was a squirrel monkey from Peru. They were tucked...
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OTD In Space - May 27: Expedition 20 Doubles Space Station's Crew Size
On May 27, 2009, three astronauts launched to the International Space Station to complete the crew of Expedition 20. Expedition 20 was the first six-person crew to live and work at the space station for a long-duration stay. Russian...
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OTD In Space - May 25: Phoenix Spacecraft Lands On Mars
On May 25, 2008, NASA's Phoenix lander arrived on Mars. [‘On This Day in Space’ Phoenix was NASA's sixth mission to successfully land on Mars, and it was the first mission to touch down near the planet's north pole. The objective for...
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OTD In Space - May 24: NASA Launches Aurora 7
On May 24, 1962, NASA astronaut Scott Carpenter became the fourth American to go to space and the second American to orbit the Earth. Carpenter was one of NASA’s first group of astronauts known as the "Mercury Seven.” He was the backup...
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Could Rocket Lab Pick Up Mars Samples From NASA's Rover? Watch Animation How
See Rocket Lab's "proposed mission architecture" for a Mars sample return mission in this animation. Credit: Rocket Lab
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OTD In Space - May 23: NASA Astronauts Take Impromptu Spacewalk
On May 23, 2017, NASA astronauts Peggy Whitson and Jack Fischer took an urgent and unplanned spacewalk to replace a broken data relay box outside of the International Space Station. The problematic device, known as a...
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OTD In Space - May 22: SpaceX Launches 1st Private Cargo Mission To The International Space Station
On May 22, 2012, SpaceX launched the first commercial flight to the International Space Station. The Dragon was the first American spacecraft to visit the space station since NASA ended the space shuttle program almost a year earlier....
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OTD In Space - May 19: STS-101 Launches With 1st 'Glass Cockpit'
On May 19, 2000, the space shuttle Atlantis launched with the very first "glass cockpit." This was one of several big upgrades that were made to the space shuttle before the mission STS-101. NASA called this new and improved version of...
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OTD In Space - May 20: NASA Launches Pioneer Venus 1
On May 20, 1978, NASA launched a spacecraft to Venus. The mission was called Pioneer-Venus 1, but it’s also known as the Pioneer Venus Orbiter. This was the first of two spacecraft that made up the Pioneer Venus mission. Pioneer Venus 2...
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Firefly's Blue Ghost Moon Landing Captured With NASA Stereo Cameras
NASA's Stereo Cameras for Lunar-Plume Surface Studies (SCALPSS) captured the landing of Firefly's Blue Ghost landing on the moon. Credit: NASA/Olivia Tyrrell | edited by Space.com
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OTD In Space - May 18: Apollo 10 Launches For Lunar Landing Dress Rehearsal
On May 18, 1969, Apollo 10 launched on a mission to the moon. Apollo 10 was considered a "dress rehearsal" for a lunar landing. It did everything the same as a real lunar landing mission, except for the part where the lander actually...
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OTD In Space - May 17: NASA Launches 1st Synchronous Meteorological Satellite
On May 17, 1974, NASA launched the first Synchronous Meteorological Satellite, SMS-1. This was the first satellite designed to monitor meteorological conditions from a geostationary orbit. This kind of orbit allowed it to stay above a...
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OTD In Space - May 16: Space Shuttle Endeavour Launches On Final Flight
On May 16, 2011, the space shuttle Endeavour launched on its 25th and final flight. This was also the penultimate mission of the entire shuttle program. Five NASA astronauts and one Italian astronaut made up the STS-134 crew. They...
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OTD In Space - May 15: Last Flight Of NASA's Mercury Program
On May 15, 1963, NASA astronaut Gordon Cooper launched on the sixth and final crewed flight of the Mercury Program. This was also the last time a NASA astronaut launched on a solo mission to space. Cooper lifted off from Cape Canaveral...
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OTD In Space - May 14: NASA Launches 1st Skylab Space Station
On May 14, 1973, NASA launched Skylab, the first American space station. Skylab orbited Earth for six years and supported three crewed missions during which astronauts conducted hundreds of science experiments. Skylab was considered a...
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OTD In Space - May 13: Apollo Spacecraft LaunchesFfor Abort Test
On May 13, 1964, NASA launched the second abort test of the Apollo spacecraft. This uncrewed mission would demonstrate that the launch escape system could safely eject the Apollo command module in case of an emergency. For the first...
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Firefly's Blue Ghost On Moon Seen By Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter
The Firefly Aerospace Blue Ghost lander on the moon was captured by NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. Credit: Space.com | imagery courtesy: NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University / Firefly Aerospace | edited by Steve Spaleta
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OTD In Space - May 10: M2-F2 Lifting Body Crashes
On May 10, 1967, a NASA research aircraft known as the wingless M2-F2 lifting body crashed on Rogers Dry Lakebed at the Dryden Flight Research Center in California. The test pilot, Bruce Peterson, was severely injured, but he survived,...
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Soyuz Crew Docks With ISS - Watch This Amazing Time-Lapse
NASA's Jonny Kim along with Russia's Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky, launched to the International Space Station atop a Soyuz 2.1a rocket from Russia's Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Credit: Space.com | footage courtesy: NASA...