50 years of Nasa

 2008 is the 50th year of operations for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration – that’s Nasa, to you and me. Nasa is very nearly as old as space exploration itself, having partly grown out of the Cold War rivalry between the US and the Soviet Union. When that country beat the US to the punch in October 1957 by launching Sputnik, the world’s first artificial satellite, it was a spur to Congress and President Eisenhower – who signed the National Aeronautics and Space Act the following July. July 29 specifically marks 50 years since US Congress passed the legislation that officially established the agency. This brand new organisation was established with a broad mission: to explore and use space for the benefit “of all mankind”.  

Early years

Nasa/AP/PA Photos

Nasa began operations on October 1 1958, launching the world’s first communications satellite in December of that year. President Eisenhower’s Christmas message was beamed from the satellite, named Project SCORE, making his the first voice ever sent from space to Earth.Pictured: T Keith Glennan, Nasa's first Administrator

First astronauts

AP/PA Photos

Project Mercury was part of Nasa’s early efforts to investigate the possibilities of human spaceflight. On April 9 1959, Nasa unveiled the Mercury Seven: seven men selected as the first US astronaut corps. Among them was Alan Shepard, who became the first American in space on February 20 1960 when he flew in the Mercury capsule dubbed Freedom 7 – just 23 days after Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first ever human in space.In 1965, John Glenn – another member of the Mercury Seven – became the first American to orbit Earth.   Space monkeys AP/US Army/AP/PA Photos On May 28 1959, a rhesus monkey named Able and a squirrel monkey named Miss Baker became the first living creatures to successfully return to Earth after travelling in space.Aboard a Jupiter missile AM-18, the two monkeys flew at speeds above 16,000 kmph and withstood acceleration 38 times that of Earth’s gravity.Pictured: Able being released from his life support capsule after a safe return to Earth   'By the end of the decade' Bill Achatz/AP/PA Photos On May 25 1961 President John F Kennedy vowed that there would be an American on the Moon before the end of the decade – upping Nasa’s budget and pace at once.In his “Urgent National Needs” speech, President Kennedy told the US:“No single space project in this period will be more impressive to mankind, or more important for the long-range exploration of space… in a very real sense, it will not be one man going to the moon - if we make this judgment affirmatively, it will be an entire nation. For all of us must work to put him there.”   Moon landing Neil A. Armstrong/AP/PA Photos July 20 1969 will be forever remembered as the day humankind first set foot on the Moon. The Apollo 11 mission delivered astronauts Neil Armstrong, Edwin ‘Buzz’ Aldrin and Michael Collins to the Moon; Neil Armstrong made the “one small step for man”, followed by Aldrin. Collins orbited overhead in the Apollo command module.Pictured: Aldrin descending the steps of the lunar Module ladder   Apollo 13 AP/PA Photos In mid-April 1970, 56 hours into the flight of Apollo 13, an oxygen tank exploded, damaging life support and power systems. With televisions all over the world tuned to the developing drama, the crew members and Nasa flight controllers fought to return the spacecraft safely to Earth. An ingenious course correction and improvisation of a ‘lifeboat’ from the lunar lander module saved the day.Pictured: Apollo 13's Command Module Odyssey floats in the Pacific Ocean after splashdown   Space Shuttle Nasa/AP/PA Photos In 1972, President Nixon gave Nasa the go-ahead for developing a new ‘Space Transportation System’ (STS). This system was the reusable Space Shuttle: a vehicle still used by the US for human spaceflight missions today. The first flight of the new system (STS-1) was with the Space Shuttle Columbia in 1981.Pictured: Columbia launches April 12 1981, beginning the first Space Shuttle flight   Tragedies Nasa/AP/PA Photos Nasa history has not been without its tragedies. Among them is the 1967 launch pad simulation aboard Apollo-Saturn 204, during which a flash fire broke out in the capsule and killed three astronauts: Gus Grissom, Ed White and Roger Chaffee.In 1986, Space Shuttle Challenger was destroyed and its seven-member crew lost in an explosion shortly after take-off. In 2003, the Space Shuttle Columbia broke up on re-entering Earth’s atmosphere; again, all seven crew members were killed.Pictured: Space Shuttle Challenger explodes 73 seconds after take-off, January 28 1986   International co-operation Nasa/AP/PA Photos The Apollo-Soyuz Test Project was the first joint international human space flight effort. It took place in 1975 - at the height of the Cold War.International co-operation has continued to be key for Nasa. The Space Shuttle Atlantis docked to the Mir space station in 1995 in the first of Nasa's link-ups to the Russian station.Pictured: US astronaut Jerry Linenger and Russian cosmonaut Vasily Tsibliyev work outside Mir   Exploring planets Nasa/AP/PA Photos In 1977, Nasa launched the two Voyager probes. These were to fly away from Earth and towards the edges of the Solar System, exploring all the giant outer planets and many of their moons on the way out. Some 30 years later the probes are still flying, with Voyager 1 15.7 billion km from the sun and its twin, Voyager 2, 12.7 billion away.Nasa has undertaken a number of diverse missions to Solar System planets: the ongoing Mars Exploration Rover mission, for instance, which placed two robotic rovers – named Spirit and Opportunity – on the surface of Mars in 2003.Pictured: a view from the surface of Mars from Spirit, the Mars Exploration Rover   Hubble Space Telescope Nasa/ESA/AP/PA Photos The Hubble Space Telescope launched from the Space Shuttle Columbia (STS-31) in 1990. The orbiting telescope is a collaboration between Nasa and the European Space Agency (ESA), and has amazed astronomers and the public alike with the spectacular images it has beamed back over its 18 years in space.Pictured: A Hubble Space Telescope image of sparkling young stars within giant nebula NGC 3603   International Space Station Nasa/AP/PA Photos In 1998, representatives from 15 countries met in Washington DC to formally agree to cooperate on the design, assembly, operation and use of an International Space Station (ISS).Expedition One of the ISS launched in late 2000, and after the first resident crew entered the station on November 2 2000, the ISS has been continuously inhabited – that is, it is the first permanent human presence in space.Zooming along at 27,700 kmph, the ISS is in a low Earth orbit and can be seen at night with the naked eye. The station is expected to be fully built in 2010.   Ongoing missions ESA/PA Archive/PA Photos Nasa’s work today is varied: in 2004, the Cassini-Huygens spacecraft became the first to orbit around Saturn after an epic seven-year journey to that planet - a joint effort of Nasa and the European Space Agency. The Stardust mission brought a precious sample of material from a comet back to Earth in 2006. Also in 2006, the New Horizons spacecraft launched from Cape Canaveral and began its nine-year voyage toward Pluto, and Dr. John Mather of Nasa’s Goddard Space Flight Center received the Nobel Prize for Physics.   Looking ahead Gerald Herbert/AP/PA Photos In 2004, President Bush announced the new Vision for Space Exploration in a speech at Nasa headquarters.Among the goals outlined in the speech was a human return trip to the Moon by 2020, in preparation for human exploration of Mars and other destinations.Pictured: President Bush greeting Space Shuttle astronaut Clayton Anderson   Nasa's 50th birthday Nasa For all of 2008, Nasa is celebrating its 50 years of endeavours and accomplishments in space. The celebrations take the form of lectures, galas, forums on the future of space exploration, school competitions – and a golf tournament.   Why carry on? Paul E. Alers/AP/PA Photos On April 21 2008, in a special commemorative lecture entitled “Why We Should Go Into Space,” Prof. Stephen Hawking spoke eloquently on the importance of Nasa’s work: “There will be those who argue that it would be better to spend our money on solving the problems of this planet,” he said. “I am not denying the importance of fighting climate change and global warming, but we can do that and still spare a quarter of a per cent of world GDP for space. Isn’t our future worth a quarter of a per cent?”  By Jane Douglas.....

Nice journal. It reminds us what we can achieve as human beings if we work together for what is good.

For those who say it's too expensive, NASA's budget is tiny compared to what the US spends on defense.

Great one kha...thanks for Searching

Anile - Great journal! Good to see something different for a change.

Loburt - ditto that.

lot's of space technology finds its way into day-to-day life items. Super-glue is one example

Nasa mission: to explore and use space for the benefit ?of all mankind?.

the film "The Right Stuff" was about NASA early years - mostly about the time up to and including the Mercury series rockets. It was fantastic film and at 3 plus hours is great for a rainy Sunday afternoon. I dont recall seeing it around Thai markets, though.

I think the interesting point is all the incredible discoveries, inventions, images and achievements we've witnessed over the past 50 years.

Because of NASA I was able to touch the moon. They brought back a bit of it and put it in the Smithsonian, Washington DC. Anyone can rub their finger on a small slab in front of the space pod things.

I nearly wet myself at the thought of it when I was there. Thank you NASA !

your journal is always very interesting

you are great reporter............thanks for informations

A very intresting journal.

The 50th anniversary is a tribute to the dedication of scientists, engineers, astronauts, controllers and the mass of support people without whom, the space program could not exist, let alone function.

Happy Anniversary to NASA, and congratulations to all involved for at least using some of the weapons technology in the long term betterment of humankind....well we hope so anyway...