51 Famous Firsts in Space History
By
Elizabeth Jackson, Stacker News
On 2/27/21 at 7:00 AM EST
In its first manned rocket launch, SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket on May 30 is set to bring NASA astronauts to the International Space Station. The spaceflight, taking off from the same launch pad used to bring people to the moon, represents other milestones, as well: It's the first time a private company is sending people to space; it's also the first space launch since 2011 to leave from the United States. The launch was scheduled for May 27 but was rescheduled because of rain.
In honor of this historic moment, Stacker used a combination of news, government, and other archival reports to curate a gallery of 50 other historic firsts in space. Although the idea of galaxies beyond the Earth's atmosphere has long entranced human beings, it wasn't until the second half of the 20th century that space flight became a reality, enabling humans to see beyond the Earth—and, in the case of the first photographs taken of the Earth—to see the Earth itself.