NASA powers inspiration that encourages future generations to explore, learn, and build a better future.
NASA Jobs
Historical Timeline
This Month
This Month in Exploration features significant events in aviation and space exploration on a monthly basis.
Explorer 1
31 Jan. 1958 – Explorer I was the first United States Earth satellite and was sent aloft as part of the United States program for the International Geophysical Year 1957-1958.
NASA Opportunities
MyNASA
Customize your view of the NASA Web. Create an account on myNASA and bookmark your favorite pages, stories and videos.
NASA Image Gallery
Celebrate NASA's Past And Promising Future!
Inspiration
Innovation
Discovery
NASA powers discovery that enables us to learn more about ourselves, our world, and how to manage and protect it.
This Month's Featured Events
 | This Month in NASA History May is a particularly exciting month in the history of human exploration including the first launch of two monkeys into suborbital flight in 1959, President Kennedy's commitment in 1961 to land a man on the Moon by the end of the decade following Astronaut Alan Shepherds successful launch on Freedom 7, and the launch of Skylab in 1973 that became the home to three crews during 1973-1974. |
 | |
 | Celebrate NASA's 50th Anniversary With the Digital Learning Network (DLN) As part of NASA's 50th anniversary celebration, the DLN will inspire students across the country with a five-part series highlighting the contributions of each NASA Center to a specific topic in NASA history. Each live webcast will allow participants to submit questions to NASA representatives focused on NASA's past, present and future efforts of space exploration. • May 13 - Go Flight! • May 14 - Astronomy: Bringing the Past to Light • May 20 - Advancements in Aeronautics • May 20 - Propulsion: Past, Present and Future • May 21 - Wind Tunnels and Their Use in Aerospace |
| |
 | Celebrate Space Day at the National Air and Space Museum Visitors of all ages are invited for a galactic adventure at the National Air and Space Museum’s annual Space Day Saturday, May 3, celebrating NASA’s 50th anniversary this year. Washington DC May 3, 2008 |
| |
 | NASA Future Forum NASA leadership, astronauts, scientists, and engineers along with local business, technology and academic leaders and local, state and federal officials discuss the role of space exploration in advancing science, engineering, technology, education and the economy that benefits your community and the nation. The program features an exciting preview of NASA's Constellation Program America's return to the Moon and beyond. San Jose, CA May 14, 2008 |
| |
 | GLAST Launch The Universe is home to numerous exotic and beautiful phenomena, some of which can generate almost inconceivable amounts of energy. Supermassive black holes, merging neutron stars, streams of hot gas moving close to the speed of light ... these are but a few of the marvels that generate gamma-ray radiation, the most energetic form of radiation, billions of times more energetic than the type of light visible to our eyes. What is happening to produce this much energy? What happens to the surrounding environment near these phenomena? How will studying these energetic objects add to our understanding of the very nature of the Universe and how it behaves? Cape Canaveral, FL May 16, 2008 (TBD) |
| |
 | NASA Glenn Research Center Open House Join us on to explore the frontiers of air and space, where scientific research becomes the foundation for everyday applications. Cleveland, OH May 17-18, 2008 |
| |
 | Phoenix Lander Arrives on Mars Phoenix will dig to an ice-rich layer expected to lie within arm's reach of the surface. It will analyze the water and soil for evidence about climate cycles and investigate whether the environment there has been favorable for microbial life. May 25, 2008 |
| |
 | International Space Development Conference (ISDC) The theme for ISDC 2008 is "The New Pace of Space." With NASA fully engaged in building the next generation of space exploration vehicles, and the commercial space sector beginning to test fly their new personal spaceships, we have entered the next Space Age. Washington, DC May 29-June 1, 2008 |
| |
 | STS-124 Launch The STS-124 mission is the second of three flights that will launch components to complete the Kibo laboratory. The mission will include two spacewalks to install the new lab and its remote manipulator system. The lab's logistics module, which will have been installed in a temporary location during STS-123, will be attached to the new lab. Kennedy Space Center, FL May 31, 2008 |
| |
 | Odyssey of the Mind World Finals For the 8th time, NASA's Science Mission Directorate and Earth Observing System Project Science Office are pleased to sponsor an Long Term Problem—The Eccentrics College Park, MD May 31-June 3, 2008 |
| |
 | Preparing for the Year of International Astronomy In 1609, Galileo first turned his telescope to the heavens and revolutionized humanity's understanding of its place in the universe. In honor of the 400th anniversary of the astronomical telescope, the IYA will feature hands-on workshops and a three-day symposium to help educators, scientists, and anyone working in astronomy and space science outreach to prepare for the 2009 International Year of Astronomy. St. Louis, MO May 31-June 4, 2008 |
| |
| › View Archive | |
This Month's Featured Links
 | NASA Deputy Administrator Shana Dale's Blog › View Site |
| |
 | Space Technology Hall of Fame Inducts NASA Spinoff Technology The Space Foundation inducted three NASA-developed technologies into the Space Technology Hall of Fame. A medical diagnostic software tool that measures the thickness of arteries, a non-invasive medical device that improves blood flow to the heart and brain, and a technology that safely removes petroleum-based pollutants from water or soil each are being recognized as important products that originated from space technology. › Visit Site |
| |
 | The Home Planet: NASA's View of Earth As humanity ventures farther into the solar system, the focus on our home planet is as sharp as ever. › View Interactive Feature |
| |
 | Eyes on the Earth Learn more about NASA spacecraft studying our home planet. › View Interactive Feature |
| |
 | NASA Interactive Features › Visit NASA Interactive Features Site |
| |
 | This Week at NASA Audio and Video Podcasts › Visit NASA Podcast Site |
| |
 | NASA Home & City Discover how space exploration impacts your daily life. › Visit NASA Home & City Site |
| |
 | NASA 101 A summary of NASA's many programs and projects. › View NASA 101 Feature |
| |
 | Smithsonian Folklife Festival NASA at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival will showcase the role that the men and women of NASA have played in broadening the horizons of American science and culture, as well as the role that they will continue to play in helping to shape the future by stirring the public imagination. › View Website |
| |
 | Aeronautics Research Onboard Interactive Web site showcasing "Decades of Contributions to Aviation". › View Aeronautics Research Onboard Site |
| |
| › View Archive | |
50th Photo Album
As part of NASA's 50th Anniversary Celebration, we are collecting images from YOU! Have the photo include - anywhere in the shot - the NASA 50th Anniversary logo, and send the photo to us.
› Download Logo HERE
› Download Release Form (PDF)
› Submit your photos/questions HERE
Related Multimedia
-
International Space Station Calendar
Find out when the U.S. launched its first satellite and other historical tidbits with photos that highlight 50 years of NASA milestones and a decade of space station assembly.
› Download calendar (8.6 Mb PDF)