NASA's 50th Anniversary

Celebrating NASA's birthday with fantastic slideshows featuring astronauts, spacecrafts, moons, planets, and more

by Mark Hughes

A wake up call came to the American people in 1957, when the former Soviet Union became the first nation to launch a satellite into orbit. The launch of Sputnik marked the dawn of the Space Age and prompted the United States to create the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Since NASA’s founding in 1958, its accomplishments have enhanced our knowledge of the world and the universe.

Slideshows

• People in Space, notable firsts
• Ships & Space Stations
• Our Solar System
• Moons of our Solar System

• More from Astronomy and Space

• Help

• Site Map