By Steven Guessford. Sputnik and the Space Race On October 4 th, 1957, the Soviets launched Sputnik, the first satellite and the first man-made object.

The History of

NASA

By Steven Guessford

Sputnik and the Space Race• On October 4th, 1957, the Soviets launched Sputnik, the first satellite and the first man-made object to be sent into space.

• The launch of Sputnik's was a surprise to most Americans, and not a good one.

• In the United States, space was the next frontier, and it was vital not to get too far behind the Soviets.

Sputnik

Creation of NASA

In 1958, the U.S. launched its own satellite, Explorer I.

That same year, President Dwight Eisenhower signed a public order creating the National Aeronautics and Space Administration known as NASA.› NASA is a federal agency dedicated to space

exploration.› The NASA Headquarters is located in

Washington, DC.› NASA was established on July 29th, 1958

NASA Headquarters

Project Mercury and the Orbiting of Earth In 1959, the Soviets launched Luna 2, the first

space probe to hit the moon. NASA then began Project Mercury. A project to

send a man into space.On May 5th, astronaut Alan Shepard became the first

American in space. In April 1961, the Soviet astronaut Yuri Gagarin

became the first person to orbit Earth. In February 1962, John Glenn became the first

American to orbit Earth. By the end of that year, NASA began its lunar

landing program, Project Apollo.

APOLLO

President John F. Kennedy announced on May 25th, 1961, that by the end of the decade the U.S. would land a man on the moon.

By the end of that year, the lunar landing program Project Apollo began.

Apollo 1 - First Apollo mission which ended in a tragedy. Three astronauts died in a module fire.

Apollo 2 through 6 were unmanned missions Apollo 7 – 10

Apollo 7 orbited Earth 163 times. Apollo 8 orbited the Moon 10 times. Apollo 9 tested the Portable Life Support

System. Apollo 10 allowed for the first live color TV from

space.

Apollo 1 after the module fire

Apollo 11• On July 16th, 1969, Neil Armstrong, Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin and Michael Collins set off on the Apollo 11 space mission.

• This was the first lunar landing attempt.

• At 4:17 p.m. EDT. Armstrong informed Houston with the remarkable words, “Houston, this is Tranquility Base. The Eagle has landed.”

• Armstrong and Aldrin checked all of the systems and ate for the first two hours after landing

• The group skipped the planned four-hour rest to explore the moons’ surface. Apollo 11

Launch

Moon• A camera provided live coverage of the moon as Neil

Armstrong climbed down a ladder at 11:56 p.m. on July 20th, 1969.

• He took a step on the surface and said the famous words, “That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”

• After twenty minutes Aldrin followed, with Armstrong recording his descent.

• Armstrong was given the task of documenting the landing, so a majority of the images taken from the Apollo 11 mission were of Buzz Aldrin.

Landing

The Following Apollo Missions

• Apollo 12 - Retrieved parts of Surveyor 3, which had landed on the Moon in April 1967.

• Apollo 13 – The third lunar landing attempt. Mission was aborted after a service module oxygen tank rupture.

• Apollo 14 – Landed on the moon, and gathered 94 pounds of lunar materials.

• Apollo 15 - An electric-powered, 4-wheel car, the Lunar Roving Vehicle was used for the first time on the moon.

• Apollo 16 – Used ultraviolet camera was used for first time on the Moon.

• Apollo 17 - The last lunar landing mission. Harrison H. Schmitt became the first scientist-astronaut to land on the Moon during this mission.

Skylab Skylab was America’s space station. The massive station weighed 169,950 lbs. and was

constructed on Earth. It was launched unmanned to Earth orbit on May 14th,

1973. Three manned Apollo crews lived and worked aboard

Skylab. Skylab was the United States' first and only

independently built space station. Skylab paved the way for long length human

spaceflight and for the International Space Station.

Skylab Space Station

Space Shuttle ProgramO The Space Shuttle became the major

focus of NASA in the late 1970s and the 1980s.

O These shuttles were able to be frequently launched and be mostly reused.

O Four space shuttle orbiters were constructed by 1985. The first to launch was Columbia, which launched on April 12th, 1981

The International Space StationThe International Space Station joined several projects around

the world into one international program. It included;NASA's Space Station Freedom projectThe Soviet/Russian Mir-2 stationThe European Columbus stationThe Japanese Kibō laboratory module.

• NASA planned to develop Freedom alone in the 1980s, but budget limitations led to the merging of several projects into one International program in 1993.

• It was managed by; NASA The Russian Federal Space Agency The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency The European Space Agency The Canadian Space Agency

The International Space Station

Beyond Low Earth Orbit program

• For missions beyond low Earth orbit, NASA has been directed to develop the Space Launch System. Which consists of• A Saturn-V class rocket, • Two to six person, beyond low Earth orbit spacecraft.

• Barack Obama proposed that the United States should send a crew to an asteroid in the 2020s and send a crew to Mars orbit in the mid-2030s

FundingFrom 1961 to 1964, NASA's

budget was increased almost 500 percent.

In 1966 4.41% of the federal budget was given to NASA.

In 2012 0.48% of the federal budget was given to NASA.

Employees

In 1964, there were 34,000 NASA employees, these people worked on research, the Apollo missions, and the lunar landings.

In the early 90s the amount of employees had dropped to 24,000 and continued to decrease.

More than 18,000 people work for NASA in 2013.

*Mars Rovers

*A Mars rover is an automated motor vehicle, that drives itself across the surface of the planet Mars upon arrival.

*Rovers have several advantages over stationary landers:

*They examine more territory

*They can be directed to interesting features

*They can place themselves in positions for long periods of time, where humans would be unable to go.

*There have been four successful robotically operated Mars rovers.

A Mars Rover

Famous NASA Astronauts • John Glenn - 1921 – Present

▫ The first U.S. astronaut to orbit Earth.• Apollo 11

▫Buzz Aldrin - 1930 - Present▫Neil Armstrong - 1930 - 2012▫Michael Collins - 1930 – Present

• Guion S. Bluford - 1940- Present▫ First African American Astronaut

• Sally Ride - 1951 – 2012▫ First American woman in space.

Neil Armstrong

Sally Ride

Quiz

Quest

ion #

1

Question #1 - What

was the first man-made object to be sent

into space?

A.A Soviet Ballistic Missile

B.An American Spaceship

called ApolloC.A Soviet Satellite named

SputnikD.A Canadian Tank named

Gretzky

Quiz

Quest

ion #

2

Answer to #1 - C. A

Soviet Satellite named Sputnik. Question #2 - Where is

the NASA headquarters

located

A. Dallas, TexasB. The MoonC.Area 51D.Washington, DC

Quiz

Quest

ion #

3

Answer to #2 - D.Washington, DC

Question #3 – During

what mission was the

first lunar landingA. Apollo 1B. Apollo 11C. Sputnik 1D.Operation Lunar Landing

Quiz

Quest

ion #

4

Answer to #3 - B.Apollo 11

Question #4 - Who was the first man to

walk on the moon?A. Buzz AldrinB. Neil ArmstrongC.Michael CollinsD.Yuri Gagarin

Quiz

Quest

ion #

5

Answer to #4 - B. Neil

Armstrong

Question #5 - What did

Armstrong say when he first

walked on the moon?A. “I could sure use a sandwich

right now.”B. “This day shall always be

remembered.”C. “That's one small step for man,

one giant leap for mankind.”

D. “I CAN SEE MY HOUSE FROM

HERE!”

Quiz

Quest

ion #

6

Answer to #5 - C. “That's

one small step for man,

one giant leap for mankind.”

Question #6 - What was the first American

space station?A. SkylabB. The Drop-offC. The ExpessD. IWS - 106

Quiz

Quest

ion #

7

Answer to #6 - A. Skylab Question #7 - Which one of

these projects were not part of

the international space

station?

A. NASA's Space Station Freedom

projectB. The Soviet/Russian Mir-2 station

C. The European Columbus station

D. The Cuban Stasis project

E. The Japanese Kibō laboratory

module.

Quiz

Quest

ion #

8

Answer to #7- D. The

Cuban Stasis project

Question #8 - Who was

the first African American Astronaut?A. Guion Bluford

B. Chuck BerryC.Cuba Gooding Jr.D.Ryan Smith

Quiz

Quest

ion #

9

Answer to #8 - A. Guion

Bluford

Question #9 - How many

successful robotically

operated Mars rovers

have there been?A. 8B. 4C. 22D. 0

Quiz

Quest

ion #

10

Answer to #9 - B. 4

Question #10 -Around

how many people currently work for NASA?A. 18,000B. 800C. 108,000D.34,000

End o

f Q

uiz

Answer to #10 -A. 18,000

Refe

rence

s

America in Space: Nasa's First Fifty

Years NASA: The Complete Illustrated

History http://www.history.com/topics/space-race

http://history.nasa.gov/

http://space.about.com/cs/history/a/nasa

historya.htm http://spacecovers.com/misc/ap1-17_mis

sion_info.htm http://www.space.com/16758-apollo-11-fi

rst-moon-landing.html

http://www.universetoday.com/102100/

skylab-nasa-commemorates-40th-a

nniversary-of-americas-first-space-

station-photo-gallery/