Zond 3MV-1 No.3 (Venera 1964B) is launched for Venus, but the rocket fails to reach Earth orbit.
11 years ago, in 1966:
Venera 3 is the first craft to perhaps impact Venus.
2
9 years ago, in 1968:
Zond 4 is launched to the Moon.
5 years ago, in 1972:
Pioneer 10 is launched.
3
62 years ago, in 1915:
The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) is formed.
18 years ago, in 1959:
Pioneer 4 is launched for a lunar flyby, becomes the first U.S. probe to escape Earth's gravity.
8 years ago, in 1969:
Apollo 9 is launched to test the LM, orbits the Earth for 10 days.
4
302 years ago, in 1675:
John Flamsteed is appointed as the first Astronomer Royal; The King's Astronomical Observator.
18 years ago, in 1959:
Pioneer 4 flies by the Moon, but doesn't come close enough to the Moon to trigger its camera.
5
86 years ago, in 1891:
307 Nike, a minor planet in the asteroid belt, is discovered by Auguste Charlois at the Nice Observatory.
19 years ago, in 1958:
Explorer 2 is launched, but a failure in the rocket's fourth stage prevents it from reaching orbit.
9 years ago, in 1968:
Zond 4 goes around the Moon, and heads back to Earth.
6
162 years ago, in 1815:
Heinrich Wilhelm Olbers of Germany discovers a periodic comet, 13P/Olbers.
18 years ago, in 1959:
Last contact is made with Pioneer 4.
7
15 years ago, in 1962:
The first Orbiting Solar Observatory (OSO-1, OSO-A) is launched to measure the solar electromagnetic radiation in the UV, X-ray, and gamma-ray regions.
9 years ago, in 1968:
Zond 4 self destructs during re-entry, due to a guidance systems failure.
4 years ago, in 1973:
Comet Kohoutek (C/1973 E1) is first sighted by Czech astronomer Luboš Kohoutek.
8
10 years ago, in 1967:
The replacement third Orbiting Solar Observatory, OSO-3 (OSO-C) is launched successfully.
9
119 years ago, in 1858:
Friedrich August Theodor Winnecke 'rediscovers' comet 7P/Pons–Winnecke.
43 years ago, in 1934:
Yuri Gagarin is born in Klushino, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union.
16 years ago, in 1961:
The Soviet dog Chernushka makes one orbit on board Korabl-Sputnik-4 or Vostok-3KA No 1 (Sputnik 9) with a cosmonaut dummy, mice and a guinea pig.
12 years ago, in 1965:
OSCAR 3 is launched, becoming the first amateur satellite to use solar power and relay signals from Earth.
3 years ago, in 1974:
Mars 7 reaches Mars and prematurely releases its descent module, which misses the planet.
10
10 years ago, in 1967:
The Soviet Proton-K rocket makes its first flight, carrying the Cosmos 146 (Soyuz 7K-L1 s/n 1), a test satellite precursor to the Zond series .
This year:
The rings of Uranus are discovered using the Kuiper Airborne Observatory.
11
17 years ago, in 1960:
Able 6 (Pioneer 5) is launched for a heliocentric orbit between Earth and Venus, and confirms the interplanetary magnetic field.
12
12 years ago, in 1965:
Cosmos 60 (Kosmos 60) ) is launched to perform a soft landing on the Moon, but fails to leave Earth orbit due to a power supply failure.
3 years ago, in 1974:
Mars 6 reaches Mars and its descent module transmits 224 seconds of data, the first from the Martian atmosphere.
13
196 years ago, in 1781:
William Herschel discovers the planet Uranus; first planet discovered through a telescope.
8 years ago, in 1969:
Apollo 9 splashes down in the Atlantic Ocean and is retrieved by the USS Guadalcanal.
14
98 years ago, in 1879:
Albert Einstein is born in Ulm, Kingdom of Württemberg, in the German Empire.
15
16
51 years ago, in 1926:
Robert H. Goddard launches the first ever liquid fueled rocket.
11 years ago, in 1966:
OSCAR 4, the fourth amateur radio satellite, ceases operation.
11 years ago, in 1966:
After spending 22 days in orbit, the Soviet dogs Veterok and Ugolyok successfully return to Earth.
11 years ago, in 1966:
Gemini VIII is launched; completes first docking with an unmanned Agena Target Vehicle, though control problems force an abort.
2 years ago, in 1975:
Mariner 10 makes its third Mercury flyby.
17
125 years ago, in 1852:
16 Psyche, one of the ten most massive objects in the asteroid belt, is discovered by the Italian astronomer Annibale de Gasparis from Naples.
78 years ago, in 1899:
Phoebe, a moon of Saturn, is the first moon to be discovered photographically (William Pickering).
19 years ago, in 1958:
Vanguard 1, the first solar powered satellite, is launched and reaches orbit.
18
12 years ago, in 1965:
Voskhod 2 is launched, and Alexei Leonov becomes the first person to leave a spacecraft in orbit, going for a 12 minute spacewalk (EVA).
19
12 years ago, in 1965:
Voskhod 2 returns to Earth.
12 years ago, in 1965:
The Canberra Deep Space Communication Complex (CDSCC) is officially opened.
20
196 years ago, in 1781:
M96 (NGC 3368), an intermediate spiral galaxy in the constellation Leo, is discovered by Pierre Méchain.
13 years ago, in 1964:
The ESRO (European Space Research Organisation) Convention is formed.
21
293 years ago, in 1684:
Giovanni Cassini discovers one of Saturn's moons, Tethys.
14 years ago, in 1963:
The Soviet Mars 1(2MV-4) ceases communication.
13 years ago, in 1964:
Luna E-6 No.6 (Luna 1964A) is launched to perform a soft landing on the Moon, but fails to reach orbit and reenters the atmosphere.
12 years ago, in 1965:
Ranger 9, last of the Ranger series, is launched to the Moon.
22
23
137 years ago, in 1840:
John William Draper takes the first successful photograph (Daguerreotype process) of the Moon.
35 years ago, in 1942:
5535 Annefrank, a minor planet in the inner asteroid belt, is discovered by German astronomer Karl Reinmuth at the Heidelberg Observatory.
12 years ago, in 1965:
Gemini 3 is the first manned Gemini flight; completes three orbits.
24
196 years ago, in 1781:
M105 (NGC 3379), an elliptical galaxy in the constellation Leo, is discovered by Pierre Méchain.
12 years ago, in 1965:
Ranger 9 provides real-time coverage over TV networks of its approach and crash into the Moon.
25
322 years ago, in 1655:
Christiaan Huygens discovers Saturn's largest moon, Titan.
166 years ago, in 1811:
The French astronomer Honore Flaugergues discovers the Great Comet of 1811 (C/1811 F1), visible to the naked eye for about 260 days.
16 years ago, in 1961:
The Soviet dog Zvyozdochka makes one orbit on board Korabl-Sputnik 5 or Vostok-3KA No 2 (Sputnik 10) with a wooden cosmonaut dummy.
16 years ago, in 1961:
Explorer 10 is launched to investigate Earth's magnetic fields and nearby plasma.
26
19 years ago, in 1958:
Explorer 3 is launched, and confirms the Van Allen Belts.
8 years ago, in 1969:
Meteor-1-1, the Soviet Union's first fully operational weather satellite, is successfully launched.
27
16 years ago, in 1961:
After 52 hours, Explorer 10's batteries fail, as per expectations.
16 years ago, in 1961:
Explorer 10 becomes the first satellite to measure the shock wave from a solar flare.
13 years ago, in 1964:
Ariel 2 (UK-C) is successfully launched and becomes the first satellite to be used for radio astronomy.
13 years ago, in 1964:
Cosmos 21 (Kosmos 21, Zond 3MV-1 No.3) is launched to make a flyby of Venus, but once in Earth orbit the main engine fails to start.
12 years ago, in 1965:
OSCAR 3's linear transponder fails, ending communication.
9 years ago, in 1968:
Yuri Gagarin (age 34) is killed when his MiG-15UTI jet trainer crashes near the town of Kirzhach.
8 years ago, in 1969:
Mariner 7 is launched to Mars.
8 years ago, in 1969:
The Soviet Union launches Mars 2M No.521 (Mars 1969A), but the third stage explodes after liftoff.
5 years ago, in 1972:
The Venera 8 probe is launched for Venus.
28
175 years ago, in 1802:
Heinrich Wilhelm Olbers of Germany discovers the third largest asteroid, Pallas.
14 years ago, in 1963:
NASA launches the first stage booster of the Saturn 1 rocket on a fourth and final test flight.
29
170 years ago, in 1807:
Heinrich Wilhelm Olbers of Germany discovers the second largest asteroid, Vesta.
41 years ago, in 1936:
Over 10,000 people watch the 200-inch mirror blank for the Hale Telescope passing by rail through Indianapolis.
32 years ago, in 1945:
The last day of V-1 rocket bomb attacks on England occurs, only to be soon replaced by the V-2.
3 years ago, in 1974:
Mariner 10 makes its first Mercury flyby.
30
31
11 years ago, in 1966:
Luna 10 is launched to the Moon.
7 years ago, in 1970:
After 12 years in orbit, America's first satellite, Explorer 1, burns up in the atmosphere.
It's been 3958 days
