Skip to Content

History of famous firsts in space


Unknown // Wikimedia Commons

History of famous firsts in space



Star-Film

1902: First space movie



NASA // Flickr

1947: First insects in space



NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center // Wikimedia Commons

1948: First monkey sent to space



NASA

1958: First American man-in-space program



NASA

1959: America’s first astronauts



Arto Jousi // Wikimedia Commons

1961: First person in space



NASA // Flickr

1961: First American in space



Keystone/Hulton Archive // Getty Images

1961: First lengthy space flight



NASA // Getty Images

1962: First American orbits the Earth



Central Press // Getty Images

1963: First woman in space



AFP // Getty Images

1963: First cat in space



Andrew Gray // Wikimedia Commons

1964: First flight without space suits



Central Press // Getty Images

1965: First spacewalk



NASA // Wikimedia Commons

1965: First American space walk



NASA // Flickr

1966: First manned docking in space



NASA // Wikimedia Commons

1966: First full-Earth photo from the moon’s orbit



NASA // Wikimedia Commons

1968: First view of the far side of the moon



Central Press/Hulton Archive // Getty Images

1969: First multi-craft, multi-manned week



NASA/AFP // Getty Images

1969: First man on the moon



Neil Armstrong/NASA // Getty Images

1969: First man pees on the moon



Keystone/Hulton Archive // Getty Images

1971: First deaths in space



STF/AFP // Getty Images

1971: First moon golf



Keystone/Hulton Archive // Getty Images

1971: First spacecraft links to space station



NASA // Flickr

1973: First skylab



AFP // Getty Images

1975: First international manned spaceflight



Lucasfilm

1977: First ‘Star Wars’ film



Michalis Famelis // Flickr

1980: First Black astronaut in space



NASA // Flickr

1981: First space shuttle reaches orbit



Unknown // Wikimedia Commons

1983: First American woman in space



NASA // Flickr

1983: First African American in space



AFP // Getty Images

1984: First Soviet woman walks in space



NASA // Wikimedia Commons

1984: First untethered spacewalk



Subhav Sharma // Wikimedia Commons

1984: First Indian in space



Spocksmind // Wikimedia Commons

1985: First royal in space



NASA

1985: First Atlantis shuttle flight



NASA // Flickr

1988: First space shuttle flight since Challenger disaster



NASA // Wikimedia Commons

1989: First probe launched from a shuttle



Jack Taylor // Getty Images

1991: First British astronaut visits space



NASA // Wikimedia Commons

1992: First satellite captured with bare hands



NASA // Getty Images

1995: First woman commands space shuttle mission



NASA // Flickr

1995: First American aboard Soviet spaceship



NASA // Flickr

1995: First meetup between Atlantis and Mir



NASA // Flickr

1996: First American woman serves on Mir



NASA // Flickr

2000: First International Space Station crew



NASA // Wikimedia Commons

2001: World’s first space tourist



NASA

2002: First space railway



NASA // Flickr

2003: First man marries in space



NASA // Flickr

2007: First space marathon



NASA // Flickr

2012: First commercial space mission



NASA // Flickr

2015: First successful Pluto mission



NASA

2021: First helicopter on Mars



PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images

2021: A billionaire space race blasts off


Article Topic Follows: Science - Stacker

Jump to comments ↓

Stacker

BE PART OF THE CONVERSATION

KTVZ NewsChannel 21 is committed to providing a forum for civil and constructive conversation.

Please keep your comments respectful and relevant. You can review our Community Guidelines by clicking here

If you would like to share a story idea, please submit it here.

Skip to content