Latest History Content
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The X-15 hypersonic rocket-powered aircraft, built by North American Aviation (NAA), greatly expanded our knowledge of flight at speeds exceeding…
The Apollo 11 mission in July 1969 completed the goal set by President John F. Kennedy in 1961 to land…
On Sept. 10, 2009, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) launched its first cargo delivery spacecraft, the H-II Transfer Vehicle-1…
On Sept. 9, 1994, space shuttle Discovery took to the skies on its 19th trip into space. During their 11-day…
On Sept. 13, 1944, researchers subjected a Bell P-39L Airacobra to frigid temperatures and a freezing water spray in the…
On Aug. 30, 1984, space shuttle Discovery lifted off on the STS-41D mission, joining NASA’s fleet as the third space…
On Aug. 29, 1789, German-born British astronomer William Herschel observed a tiny bright dot orbiting around Saturn. His son later…
On Aug. 28, 2009, space shuttle Discovery began its 37th trip into space. The 17A mission to the International Space…
On Aug. 27, 1984, President Ronald W. Reagan announced the Teacher in Space project as part of NASA’s Space Flight…
On Aug. 10, 1969, Apollo 11 astronauts Neil A. Armstrong, Michael Collins, and Edwin E. “Buzz” Aldrin completed their 21-day…
On Aug. 14, 1969, NASA announced the selection of seven new astronauts. The Group 7 astronauts consisted of pilots transferred…
Each Aug. 4, Coast Guard Day commemorates the founding on Aug. 4, 1790, of the U.S. Coast Guard as the…
The excerpts below are taken from Discovery Program oral history interviews conducted in 2009 by Dr. Susan Niebur and tell…
Long before Apollo astronauts set foot upon the Moon, much remained unknown about the lunar surface. While most scientists believed…
On July 23, 1999, space shuttle Columbia took to the skies on its 26th trip into space, to deliver its…
On July 23, 1979, space shuttle Enterprise completed its time as a pathfinder vehicle at Launch Pad 39A at NASA’s…
At the end of February 1998, Johnson Space Center Deputy Director James D. Wetherbee called Astronaut Eileen Collins to his…
“Houston, Tranquility Base here, the Eagle has landed.” “That’s one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind.”…
On July 15, 2009, space shuttle Endeavour began its 23rd trip into space, on the 2JA mission to the International…
A few days before they left Skylab on Feb. 8, 1974, the final crew to occupy the station raised its…
On July 8, 1994, space shuttle Columbia took to the skies on its 17th trip into space, on the second…