Caroline Herschel discovers her first comet, Comet C/1786 P1 (Herschel).
139 years ago, in 1967:
The Lunar Orbiter 5 probe, the last of the Lunar Orbiter series, is launched.
135 years ago, in 1971:
Apollo 15 mission commander David R. Scott discovers the Genesis Rock.
131 years ago, in 1975:
Communications with Alouette 2 are terminated after 10 years.
2
973 years ago, in 1133:
King Henry's Eclipse occurs over England, with totality lasting for over four minutes, and coinciding with the death of King Henry I.
115 years ago, in 1991:
Aboard the shuttle Atlantis (STS-43), Shannon Lucid becomes the first woman to go to space three times.
114 years ago, in 1992:
ESA's European Retrievable Carrier (EURECA), a 4.5 tonne satellite with 15 experiments, is deployed by Space Shuttle Atlantis (STS-46).
101 years ago, in 2005:
Messenger flies by Earth for a gravity assist on the way to Mercury.
3
2537 years ago, in -431:
The oldest European record of a verifiable solar eclipse (annular) is given by the Greek historian Thucydides.
510 years ago, in 1596:
David Fabricius discovers the first known periodic variable star, Mira, in the constellation of Cetus.
102 years ago, in 2004:
Messenger is launched to Mercury.
4
137 years ago, in 1969:
Approaching Mars, Mariner 7 takes the first photograph of Mars' moon Phobos from space.
135 years ago, in 1971:
The Apollo 15 Particles and Fields Subsatellite (PFS-1) is launched from the scientific instrument module of the Service Module.
115 years ago, in 1991:
Aboard the shuttle Atlantis (STS-43), Shannon Lucid and James Adamson send the first e-mail from space.
99 years ago, in 2007:
The Phoenix Mars Mission is launched.
5
139 years ago, in 1967:
Lunar Orbiter 5 goes into a polar orbit around the Moon.
137 years ago, in 1969:
Mariner 7 makes its closest approach to Mars.
135 years ago, in 1971:
Aboard Apollo 15, Al Worden makes the first deep space EVA to retrieve a film and data recording canister from the Service Module.
133 years ago, in 1973:
The Soviet Mars 6 spacecraft is launched.
95 years ago, in 2011:
Juno is launched for Jupiter aboard an Atlas V rocket.
6
145 years ago, in 1961:
Aboard Vostok 2, Gherman Titov is the second person to orbit the Earth, orbiting 17 times.
144 years ago, in 1962:
The Friendship 7 spacecraft is placed on display at the Century 21 Exhibition in Seattle, Washington.
141 years ago, in 1965:
Zond 2 passes by Mars, though no data is sent due to loss of communication.
106 years ago, in 2000:
Progress M1-3 (ISS-1P) is the first Progress resupply mission launched to the ISS.
94 years ago, in 2012:
The Curiosity Rover lands on Mars (E.S.T.).
92 years ago, in 2014:
The ESA's Rosetta becomes the first probe to orbit a comet, 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko.
7
147 years ago, in 1959:
Explorer 6 is launched to study micrometeorites, cosmic rays, etc; it also takes the first photograph of Earth from orbit.
145 years ago, in 1961:
Vostok 2 lands back on Earth after a day in orbit.
137 years ago, in 1969:
Zond 7, an unmanned version of Soyuz 7K-L1 manned Moon-flyby spacecraft, is launched for a test flight to the Moon.
135 years ago, in 1971:
Apollo 15 splashes down in the North Pacific Ocean and is retrieved by the USS Okinawa.
130 years ago, in 1976:
Viking 2 arrives at Mars.
125 years ago, in 1981:
Bulgaria's first satellite, Bulgaria 1300 (Interkosmos 22) is successfully launched.
103 years ago, in 2003:
The Scaled Composites SpaceShipOne makes its first unpowered glide test flight.
100 years ago, in 2006:
Comet McNaught (C/2006 P1) is discovered by British-Australian astronomer Robert H. McNaught.
88 years ago, in 2018:
The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) takes its "first light" science image.
8
129 years ago, in 1977:
The Salyut 5 space station burns up in Earth's atmosphere after 412 days in orbit.
128 years ago, in 1978:
The Pioneer Venus Multiprobe (5 separate probes) is launched.
117 years ago, in 1989:
The ESA's Hipparcos satellite is launched to provide precision astrometry, resulting in the publication of the Hipparcos Catalogue in 1997.
105 years ago, in 2001:
The Genesis spacecraft is launched to collect solar wind samples for return to Earth.
99 years ago, in 2007:
The shuttle Endeavour (STS-118) is launched to the ISS with the S5 truss segment and the External Stowage Platform-3 (ESP-3).
99 years ago, in 2007:
Aboard the shuttle Endeavour (STS-118), Tracy Dyson becomes the first person in space who was born after the Apollo 11 mission to the Moon.
9
137 years ago, in 1969:
The sixth Orbiting Solar Observatory, OSO-6 (OSO-G) is launched successfully.
133 years ago, in 1973:
The Soviet Mars 7 spacecraft is launched.
131 years ago, in 1975:
The European Space Research Organisation's COS-B is launched by NASA to study cosmic gamma ray sources.
130 years ago, in 1976:
Luna 24 (USSR) is launched to the Moon; the third Soviet attempt to bring back soil from the surface of Mare Crisium.
93 years ago, in 2013:
Voyager 1 makes the first measurement of the density of the interstellar medium.
10
333 years ago, in 1773:
Charles Messier first observes NGC 205, also known in later years as M110.
140 years ago, in 1966:
NASA's Lunar Orbiter 1 is launched to photograph the Moon.
139 years ago, in 1967:
ATS-4 is launched by NASA to investigate the possibilities of a gravity gradient stabilization system, but fails to reach its intended orbit.
131 years ago, in 1975:
Comet West (C/1975 V1) is discovered by Richard M. West at the European Southern Observatory.
116 years ago, in 1990:
The Magellan spacecraft enters orbit around Venus.
114 years ago, in 1992:
The first South Korean satellite, KITSAT-1, is successfully launched.
114 years ago, in 1992:
TOPEX/Poseidon, the first major oceanographic research satellite and a joint mission between NASA and CNES, is successfully launched.
112 years ago, in 1994:
Turkey's first communications satellite, Turksat 1B, is launched.
11
144 years ago, in 1962:
Vostok 3 is launched into orbit to meet up with Vostok 4; the first time that two manned spacecraft are in orbit together.
143 years ago, in 1963:
Last contact is made with Explorer 14.
137 years ago, in 1969:
The Apollo 11 astronauts are released from their three-week quarantine following their liftoff from the Moon.
137 years ago, in 1969:
Zond 7 flies past the Moon at a distance of 1232 miles (1984 km), and conducts two picture taking sessions of the lunar surface.
12
229 years ago, in 1877:
Asaph Hall, Sr., an American astronomer, discovers the first of Mars' moons, Deimos.
146 years ago, in 1960:
Echo 1A, a metalized balloon passive-communications satellite, is launched.
144 years ago, in 1962:
Vostok 4 is launched into orbit to meet up with Vostok 3.
137 years ago, in 1969:
ATS-5 is launched, but starts to spin in the wrong direction after orbit insertion, thus ending the mission.
129 years ago, in 1977:
The shuttle Enterprise makes its first Approach and Landing Test (ALT-12) after being releasd from the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft.
129 years ago, in 1977:
HEAO-1 (High Energy Astronomy Observatory 1) is launched, carrying four X-ray and gamma-ray astronomy instruments.
128 years ago, in 1978:
International Sun-Earth Explorer-3 (ISEE-3) is launched to investigate the solar wind.
101 years ago, in 2005:
The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) is launched.
88 years ago, in 2018:
The Parker Solar Probe is launched on its seven year mission to study the Sun.
13
208 years ago, in 1898:
433 Eros, the first discovered and second-largest near-Earth asteroid, is discovered by the German astronomer Carl Gustav Witt at the Berlin Urania Observatory.
176 years ago, in 1930:
A meteor explodes in an air burst over the Curuca River area in Brazil.
134 years ago, in 1972:
Meteoroid Technology Satellite (MTS, Explorer 46) is successfully launched to measure meteoroid penetration rates and information on meteoroid velocity.
94 years ago, in 2012:
Voyager 2 becomes NASA's longest operating mission, breaking the previous record of 12,758 days held by Pioneer 6.
14
309 years ago, in 1797:
Caroline Herschel and Eugene Bouvard independently discover Comet C/1797 P1 (Bouvard-Herschel).
140 years ago, in 1966:
NASA's Lunar Orbiter 1 becomes the first American craft to orbit the Moon.
137 years ago, in 1969:
Zond 7 reenters the Earth's atmosphere and makes a soft landing 50 km south of Kustanai, Kazakhstan.
130 years ago, in 1976:
Luna 24 (USSR) goes into orbit around the Moon.
15
144 years ago, in 1962:
After successful communication with each other and almost 4 days in orbit, Vostok 3 and 4 return home.
129 years ago, in 1977:
At Ohio State University’s Big Ear radio telescope, astronomers detect the famous "Wow!" signal.
113 years ago, in 1993:
The ESA's Hipparcos satellite is deactivated after a successful mission of just over four years.
16
145 years ago, in 1961:
Explorer 12 is launched to measure the Solar Wind, Cosmic Rays, and interplanetary magnetic fields.
143 years ago, in 1963:
NASA's M2-F1 wingless aircraft prototype made its first glide flight after being towed 12,000 feet into the air by a C-47 Skytrain.
91 years ago, in 2015:
Cassini makes its last flyby of Saturn's moon Dione.
17
173 years ago, in 1933:
Under the leadership of Sergey Korolev, the Group for the Study of Reactive Motion (GIRD) launches the first Soviet liquid-fueled rocket.
148 years ago, in 1958:
Able 1 (Pioneer 0) is the world's first craft intended for launch out of Earth's orbit, but explodes 77 seconds after lift-off.
140 years ago, in 1966:
Pioneer 7 is launched to obtain measurements of interplanetary phenomena.
136 years ago, in 1970:
Venera 7 is launched for Venus.
126 years ago, in 1980:
Viking Orbiter 1 ends its mission at Mars.
110 years ago, in 1996:
Aboard the Soyuz TM-24 mission to Mir, Claudie André-Deshays becomes the first French woman in space.
92 years ago, in 2014:
Comet C/2014 Q2 (Lovejoy) is discovered by Australian amateur astronomer Terry Lovejoy.
89 years ago, in 2017:
The first-ever observation of gravitational waves from two colliding neutron stars is observed.
18
238 years ago, in 1868:
French astronomer Pierre Jules César Janssen discovers an unknown element, now known as helium, in the spectrum of the sun during a total eclipse.
229 years ago, in 1877:
Asaph Hall, Sr., an American astronomer, discovers the second of Mars' moons, Phobos.
140 years ago, in 1966:
Lunar Orbiter 1 begins taking photos of the Moon.
130 years ago, in 1976:
Luna 24 (USSR) lands on the Moon, and successfully collects a soil sample.
121 years ago, in 1985:
Suisei (MS-T5), Japan's second deep space probe, is launched from the Uchinoura Space Center.
107 years ago, in 1999:
Cassini makes a pass by Earth for a gravity assist to Saturn.
19
148 years ago, in 1958:
Thomas Keith Glennan becomes the first Administrator of NASA.
146 years ago, in 1960:
Korabl-Sputnik 2 (Sputnik 5) is the first to return plants and animals (2 dogs; Belka and Strelka, 2 rats & 40 mice) alive from Earth orbit.
142 years ago, in 1964:
Syncom 3 is launched, becoming the first successful geostationary communication satellite.
130 years ago, in 1976:
Luna 24 lifts off from the Moon, and heads to Earth with its soil sample.
124 years ago, in 1982:
On a mission to the Salyut 7 space station, Svetlana Savitskaya becomes the second woman in space.
20
221 years ago, in 1885:
Ernst Hartwig, at the Dorpat Observatory in Estonia, discovers supernova SN 1885A in Andromeda, the first Type Ia detected outside our galaxy.
142 years ago, in 1964:
The International Satellite Telecommunication Organization (Intelsat) is created in Washington, D.C.
131 years ago, in 1975:
Viking 1 is launched to Mars.
129 years ago, in 1977:
Voyager 2 is launched.
21
149 years ago, in 1957:
A Soviet R-7 Semyorka is launched and flies 6000 km (3700 mi) to become the world's first ICBM.
141 years ago, in 1965:
Gemini V is launched; first week-long flight, completes 120 orbits.
134 years ago, in 1972:
OAO-3 (Copernicus) is launched with an X-ray detector and an 80 cm UV telescope.
113 years ago, in 1993:
Communication is lost with the Mars Observer during interplanetary cruise phase, thus ending the mission.
110 years ago, in 1996:
The Fast Auroral Snapshot Explorer (FAST), the second spacecraft in NASA's Small Explorer program, is launched to observe and measure the plasma physics of the auroras at both of Earth's poles.
90 years ago, in 2016:
Communication is re-established with the solar probe STEREO B.
22
143 years ago, in 1963:
U.S. Air Force Captain Joe Walker flies an X-15 space plane higher than ever flown before, at an altitude of over 67 miles (108 kilometers).
110 years ago, in 1996:
Pioneer 8 is commanded to switch to its backup transmitter, and a download link is re-acquired.
106 years ago, in 2000:
The Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia sees first light.
103 years ago, in 2003:
An accidental propellant ingition in the solid-fuel Brazilian VLS-1 rocket destroys the launch pad, killing 21 people.
23
145 years ago, in 1961:
Ranger 1 is launched to be placed in an eliptical orbit around the Moon, but burns up in low orbit four days later.
140 years ago, in 1966:
Lunar Orbiter 1 returns the first ever image of Earth taken from the Moon.
130 years ago, in 1976:
Luna 24 successfully returns the capsule with the lunar soil sample to Earth.
117 years ago, in 1989:
The first Progress-M spacecraft, Progress M-1, is launched to Mir.
95 years ago, in 2011:
The WISE space telescope confirms a new class of brown dwarf star, the Y dwarf.
24
148 years ago, in 1958:
Explorer 5 is launched, but fails when the rocket's first stage collides with its second stage after separation.
145 years ago, in 1961:
Last contact is made with Explorer 7.
140 years ago, in 1966:
Luna 11 is launched to the Moon.
130 years ago, in 1976:
After 49 days, Soyuz 21 leaves the Salyut 5 space station and lands on Earth.
100 years ago, in 2006:
Pluto is demoted from planet to dwarf planet.
95 years ago, in 2011:
Supernova SN 2011fe, located in the Pinwheel Galaxy (M101), is discovered by the Palomar Transient Factory (PTF) survey .
95 years ago, in 2011:
The first failure of a Progress (M-12M, ISS-44P) resupply mission to the ISS occurs when the Soyuz-U rocket breaks up over Siberia.
90 years ago, in 2016:
The discovery of Proxima b, the closest exoplanet to Earth, is announced.
25
241 years ago, in 1865:
The Shergotty meteorite, the first example of the shergottite Mars meteorite family, falls to Earth in Shergotty (now Sherghati) in the Gaya district, India.
145 years ago, in 1961:
Explorer 13 is launched to study the effects of micrometeoroids on the spacecraft systems, but enters a lower than planned orbit.
144 years ago, in 1962:
The Sputnik 19 (Venera 2MV-1 No.1) atmospheric probe is launched for Venus, but its escape stage fails.
142 years ago, in 1964:
Explorer 20 is launched to measure electron distribution, ion density and temperature, and to estimate cosmic noise levels.
141 years ago, in 1965:
What was supposed to have been the third Orbiting Solar Observatory, OSO-3 (OSO-C) is launched, but fails to reach orbit when the Delta rocket exploded shortly after the second stage burn.
140 years ago, in 1966:
AS-202 is successfully launched; the second flight of the Apollo spacecraft and the third test of the Saturn IB launch vehicle.
117 years ago, in 1989:
Voyager 2 is the first probe to visit Neptune.
109 years ago, in 1997:
The Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE) is launched to study particles from the solar wind and interplanetary medium.
103 years ago, in 2003:
The Spitzer Space Telescope is launched to study the early universe in infrared light.
95 years ago, in 2011:
Chang'e 2 enters orbit around the Earth–Sun L2 Lagrangian point, making the China National Space Administration the third agency after NASA and ESA to do so.
94 years ago, in 2012:
The Voyager team declares this as the date Voyager 1 entered interstellar space.
92 years ago, in 2014:
New Horizons crosses the orbit of Neptune on its way to Pluto.
26
139 years ago, in 1967:
NASA's Crawler Transporter One is used for the first time for transport, bringing the Saturn V to the launchpad for Apollo 4.
132 years ago, in 1974:
Soyuz 15 is launched, but is unable to dock to the Salyut 3 space station because of a faulty automated docking system.
128 years ago, in 1978:
On board the Soyuz 31 mission to Salyut 6, Sigmund Jahn is the first East German citizen and first German native to visit space.
125 years ago, in 1981:
Voyager 2 flies by Saturn.
124 years ago, in 1982:
Canada's Anik D1 communications satellite is launched.
27
333 years ago, in 1773:
Caroline Herschel independently discovers NGC 205, also known in later years as M110.
144 years ago, in 1962:
Mariner 2 is launched to Venus.
140 years ago, in 1966:
Luna 11 goes into orbit around the Moon, though its TV transmitter fails.
137 years ago, in 1969:
Pioneer E is launched, but is destroyed by range safety after hydraulics in the first stage fail.
90 years ago, in 2016:
The Juno probe copletes its first flyby of Jupiter (perijove 1), and takes the first ever pictures of Jupiter's north pole.
28
317 years ago, in 1789:
William Herschel discovers a moon of Saturn, Enceladus.
145 years ago, in 1961:
After just over two days in orbit, Explorer 13 reenters the Earth's atmosphere and burns up.
142 years ago, in 1964:
The Soviet Vostok-2M carrier rocket is launched on its maiden flight, placing Kosmos 44, a Meteor weather satellite, into orbit.
132 years ago, in 1974:
Soyuz 15 leaves the Salyut 3 space station and lands on Earth.
113 years ago, in 1993:
The Galileo probe flies by an asteroid named Ida and discovers a moon, later named Dactyl.
97 years ago, in 2009:
Due to technical issues, India's Chandrayaan-1 lunar probe ends its mission.
29
141 years ago, in 1965:
Gemini V lands back on Earth.
127 years ago, in 1979:
Pioneer 11 encounters the Saturnian system.
118 years ago, in 1988:
On board the Soyuz TM-6 mission to Mir, Abdul Ahad Mohmand becomes the first Afghan to visit space.
115 years ago, in 1991:
The Soviet Vostok-2M carrier rocket makes its final flight, placing the IRS-1B satellite into orbit for the Indian Space Research Organisation.
30
140 years ago, in 1966:
Lunar Orbiter 1 returns its last picture of the Moon.
132 years ago, in 1974:
The first Dutch satellite, ANS (Astronomical Netherlands Satellite), a space-based X-ray and ultraviolet telescope, is successfully launched.
123 years ago, in 1983:
Aboard the shuttle Challenger (STS-8), Guion Bluford becomes the first African-American in space.
122 years ago, in 1984:
The shuttle Discovery (STS-41-D) lifts off for its maiden flight.
115 years ago, in 1991:
Japan launches Yohkoh (Solar-A), a Solar Observatory spacecraft.
114 years ago, in 1992:
David Jewitt and Jane Luu discover 1992 QB1, the first trans-Neptunian object discovered after Pluto and Charon.
99 years ago, in 2007:
Voyager 2 crosses the termination shock; the point at which the solar wind abruptly slows down.
94 years ago, in 2012:
NASA's two Van Allen Probes are launched to study Earth's radiation belts.
93 years ago, in 2013:
The first Qatar satellite, Es'hail 1, is successfully launched.
31
174 years ago, in 1932:
G. G. Cillié of the United Kingdom and Donald H. Menzel of the United States use eclipse spectra to show that the Sun's corona has a higher temperature than the photosphere.
156 years ago, in 1950:
The first mouse is sent into space aboard a U.S. launched V-2, but dies when the rocket disintegrates due to parachute failure.
144 years ago, in 1962:
President Kennedy signs the Communications Satellite Act of 1962, which gives the framework for private companies in the United States to own and operate their own satellites.
141 years ago, in 1965:
NASA's Super Guppy cargo plane makes its first test flight.
It's been 3989 days
