Curated category
Crewed spacecraft
- Lunar Module EagleThe spacecraft known as LM-5 carried the name Eagle. This choice appeared on the mission insignia for Apollo 11. A bald eagle featured prominently in that…
- Project MercuryThe Soviet Union placed the first satellite into orbit in October 1957. This event shocked the American public and triggered a growing fear that the US was…
- Project GeminiIn 1961, NASA officials faced a stark reality. The Soviet Union had already sent humans into orbit. Project Mercury had achieved the first American…
- Apollo command and service moduleNorth American Aviation received the initial Apollo contract on the 28th of November 1961. At that time, engineers assumed lunar landings would occur via…
- Space ShuttleOn the 24th of September 1966, NASA and the Air Force released a joint study concluding that a new vehicle was required to satisfy their respective future…
- Apollo Lunar ModuleIn July 1962, eleven firms were invited to submit proposals for the Lunar Excursion Module. Nine companies responded in September with a 60-page limited…
- Command module ColumbiaJulian Scheer, NASA assistant administrator of public affairs during the Apollo program, suggested a name for the spacecraft.
- Salyut 5The Soviet Union launched Salyut 5 as OPS-3, the final station in a secret military program known as Almaz. This designation hid its true purpose from…
- Artemis IIIArtemis III aims to land two astronauts at the Moon's south polar region for approximately one week. This mission marks the first crewed lunar landing since…
- Apollo (spacecraft)The Apollo spacecraft was composed of three parts designed to accomplish the American Apollo program's goal of landing astronauts on the Moon by the end of…
- Lunar GatewayThe Lunar Gateway began as a concept called the Deep Space Habitat in 2012. NASA released this proposal to study requirements for deep space habitats under…
- Orion (spacecraft)The idea for a Crew Exploration Vehicle arrived on the 14th of January 2004. It emerged as part of the Vision for Space Exploration following the Space…
- International Space StationThe first module of the International Space Station, named Zarya, lifted off from Baikonur Cosmodrome on the 20th of November 1998 atop a Proton rocket.
- SkylabWernher von Braun published a series of articles in Collier's magazine between 1952 and 1954 titled Man Will Conquer Space Soon!
- Artemis IIIn April 2017, NASA canceled the Asteroid Redirect Mission. This decision forced a complete rewrite of Exploration Mission-2 plans.
- Salyut 3The Soviet Union launched Salyut 3 on the 25th of June 1974. This event marked a secret chapter in space history that remained hidden for decades.