Propulsion

Neil Armstrong and David Scott achieve the first docking of two spacecraft in orbit.

The first humans to leave Earth orbit and circle the Moon, capturing the iconic Earthrise photograph.

Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin become the first humans to walk on the Moon.

An oxygen tank explosion turns a Moon landing into a legendary rescue of three astronauts.

The final Apollo Moon landing carries the first scientist-astronaut to the lunar surface.

The only spacecraft to visit all four giant planets: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.

The most distant human-made object, first to enter interstellar space.

The Space Shuttle’s daring first flight: the first crewed test of a reusable winged spacecraft.

The Challenger disaster claims seven lives and forces a reckoning in spaceflight safety culture.

Radar mapping strips away the clouds of Venus to reveal a world of volcanoes and lava plains.

The first spacecraft to orbit Jupiter discovers evidence of an ocean inside Europa.

Thirteen years at Saturn, and the first landing on a moon of another planet.

The fastest launch in history delivers the first close-up look at Pluto.

The fastest human-made object flies through the Sun’s atmosphere.

Humanity’s first planetary defense test successfully changes an asteroid’s orbit.

The Space Launch System and Orion fly a shakedown cruise around the Moon.

The largest planetary spacecraft NASA has ever built heads for Jupiter’s ocean moon.