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Items tagged with: NASAHistory


Rise and shine! 🛰️⏰

#OTD in 2014, the New Horizons spacecraft awoke from its "nap" in anticipation of reaching Pluto after almost 3 billion miles and 9 years. 7 months later, it captured these photos of Pluto (left) and Charon (right).

Read more: https://go.nasa.gov/3P1fVMH
#NASAhistory


50 years ago today, @nasa’s #Apollo17 countdown clock started in preparation for the launch of the last crewed mission to the Moon. Let’s kick off our final #Apollo50th celebration with a #TriviaTuesday poll! ⬇️
#NASAhistory


#OTD in 1998, the first two modules of the @Space_Station were mated together. 🛠 The newly joined Zarya module (on the left) and Unity module (right) are seen here in a photo taken by the crew of STS-88 just before their return to Earth.

Learn more: https://go.nasa.gov/3UxypFw
#NASAhistory


Today we're celebrating retired NASA astronaut and @USCG commander, Bruce Melnick! Along with being the first Coast Guard Aviator to participate in NASA's space program on STS-41 and -49, he was also the first Coastie in space!
#NASAhistory


The (Amino) Truth is Out There 👽

#OTD in 1970, Dr. Cyril Ponnamperuma at @NASAAmes and coauthors reported they had positively identified extraterrestrial amino acids in the Murchison meteorite. It was the 1st conclusive proof of chemical evolution beyond Earth. #AlienAminoAcids
#NASAhistory


Venus's surface is shrouded in mystery thanks to its ultra-thick atmosphere, but when the Pioneer Venus Orbiter reached orbit 44 years ago on Dec. 4, 1978, it sent back detailed data about the planet…for another 14 years!

More about the mission: https://go.nasa.gov/3H4FI4A
#NASAhistory


Gemini VII astronauts Jim Lovell and Frank Borman launched to Earth orbit #OTD in 1965 for a 14-day endurance mission to see how humans could handle extended periods in space and perform a rendezvous with another craft.

More about the Gemini VII mission: https://go.nasa.gov/3Fm6GmY
#NASAhistory


Astronauts Corps, then Peace Corps

#OTD in 1969, President Nixon announced that Neil Armstrong would serve as Chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee for the @PeaceCorps, a role Armstrong would serve from 1971–1973.

A video on Armstrong's life: https://go.nasa.gov/3umHlDi
#NASAhistory


Life-bringer, nuclear powerhouse, and so very hot—no wonder we study the @NASASun! Today in 1995, @nasa and @esa successfully launched the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) on a four-month journey to the Sun to study everything from its core out to its solar wind ☀️😎
#NASAhistory


Overgrown Christmas ornament or precision laser ranging spacecraft? This 1975 footage of the building of LAGEOS dug up from NASA's Archives cranks the sparkle factor up to 11! #ArchivesSparkle #ArchivesHashtagParty

Watch the whole film: https://go.nasa.gov/3B4iAiT
#NASAhistory


Match these Shuttle missions, all launched on Dec. 2! Answers in alt text.

1. STS-27
2. STS-35
3. STS-53
4. STS-61

A. 1st Hubble servicing mission
B. The 3rd classified DoD mission
C. NASA's Associate Administrator Bob Cabana was the pilot
D. Devoted to astronomical observation
#NASAhistory


#OTD in 1957, space capsules got their shape! NASA engineer Max Faget proposed a blunt conical shape for Earth re-entry based on Harvey Allen's research. The Mercury capsule, shown below during a wind tunnel test, was NASA's 1st crewed spacecraft to use this design!
#NASAhistory


(Out of this) World Champions!

#OTD in 1964, the Houston Colt .45s baseball team changed its name to the Houston @astros reflecting the city's new fame as home to the Manned Spacecraft Center (later renamed @NASA_Johnson).
#NASAhistory


Before he was an astronaut, Neil Armstrong was a @nasa test pilot, testing research planes including the X-15. Milt Thompson called him "the most technically capable of the early X-15 pilots." On the last of his 7 X-15 flights in July 1962 he reached Mach 5.74.

📷 #OTD in 1959
#NASAhistory


For the Skylab 4 crew, #NoShaveNovember lasted for almost 3 months! 🧔

Astronauts Gerald Carr (bottom) and William Pogue (top) perform a bit of zero-G "magic" in this February 1974 photo, while showing off their beard growth from nearly 3 months aboard the Skylab space station.
#NASAhistory


40 years ago today, Space Shuttle Challenger made its way to Pad 39A at @NASAKennedy in the morning fog prior to its first mission to space, STS-6. #MorningMood
#NASAhistory


As @nasa works toward a permanent presence on the Moon, the Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative, announced #OTD in 2018, is a vital part of the plan. Through CLPS, companies competitively bid to bring experiments and supplies to the Moon! https://go.nasa.gov/3ASxubU
#NASAhistory


The USS Hornet (CV-12) was commissioned #OTD in 1943. 26 years later on Nov. 28, 1969, the Hornet delivered the crew of Apollo 12 inside the Mobile Quarantine Facility to Pearl Harbor.

Which other Apollo mission did the USS Hornet serve as the prime recovery carrier for?
#NASAhistory


📢 Call for Papers! 📝

In October, we're cohosting a two-day symposium on the history of NASA's Discovery and New Frontiers Programs. Be sure to submit your paper proposals before the deadline.

Get the details: https://go.nasa.gov/3U30Zi2
#NASAhistory


Quiz time‼️

#OTD in 1964, Mariner 4 launched. This 1965 photo is the first closeup picture of what planet in our solar system? 🤔

A. Mercury
B. Venus
C. Mars
D. Jupiter

Comment below with your answer!
#NASAhistory


The first detailed map of another planet 🗺️

#50YearsAgo today, the US Geological Survey @USGS's global map of Mars was published. It was created using over 7,000 photos taken by @nasa's Mariner 9 spacecraft.

Read more:https://go.nasa.gov/3i3S6as
#NASAhistory


Giving us InSight into the inside!

On Nov. 26, 2018, the @NASAInSight lander landed on Mars to investigate the planet's interior measuring its seismic activity and interior heat. As the InSight mission prepares to wrap up, learn more about its findings: https://go.nasa.gov/3tUZtDZ
#NASAhistory


#OTD in 1975, the Lifting Body Program ended with the final flight of the X-24B by NASA research pilot Tom McMurtry.

Contributing to Space Shuttle research, these wingless vehicles were designed to fly to Earth from space and land like planes.

More: https://go.nasa.gov/3VhA3fn
#NASAhistory


Happy 11th launchiversary @MarsCuriosity! 🎉 Curiosity lifted off from Cape Canaveral #OTD in 2011 aboard an Atlas V rocket at 10:02 a.m. EST.

Catch up with the rover's latest images and discoveries: https://go.nasa.gov/3AAdmLB
#NASAhistory


The 1st widely accepted black hole, Cygnus X-1, was discovered decades earlier in 1964. X-rays emitted were detected by a pair of Geiger counters launched on a sounding rocket from White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. #BlackHoleFriday

📖 More: https://go.nasa.gov/3Xh6Tit
#NASAhistory


Not all heroes wear spacesuits.

In 2015 #OTD, President Barack Obama awarded former @nasa mathematician Katherine Johnson the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor, for her contributions to early spaceflight: https://go.nasa.gov/3EQKqBp
#WomenInSTEM
#NASAhistory


The more the merrier! 🦃

Thanksgiving 2008 in space was a full house: all 10 astronauts from STS-126 and Expedition 18 came together aboard the @Space_Station to share in the celebration! #HappyThanksgiving
#NASAhistory


After a 10-day trip to the Moon and back, Apollo 12 splashed down in the Pacific #OTD in 1969, with Pete Conrad, Dick Gordon, and Al Bean on board. They were successfully recovered and placed in quarantine on board the USS Hornet.

What happened next: https://go.nasa.gov/3gpEXIt
#NASAhistory


When STS-113 launched #20YearsAgo today, Mission Specialist John Herrington became the first enrolled member of a Native American tribe to travel to space.

Find out what he brought to space in honor of his Chickasaw Tribe: https://go.nasa.gov/3UZWu96 #NativeAmericanHeritageMonth
#NASAhistory


"Hmm, what should our theme be for Expedition 42?"

#OTD in 2014, Expedition 42 launched to the @Space_Station aboard Soyuz TMA-15M. The mission included scientific experiments to find the answer to life, the universe, and everything.

More on the mission: https://go.nasa.gov/3tMvZbp
#NASAhistory


With #Apollo17, in addition to collecting lunar rock and soil samples, Cernan and Schmitt deployed 9 instruments on the Moon's surface, many flying for the first time, that continued to return data long after their departure.
#NASAhistory


Pass the Tang-sgiving drink!

The first #Thanksgiving in space happened today in 1973. Skylab 4 astronauts Gerald Carr, Edward Gibson, and William Pogue celebrated after a grueling 6.5 hour spacewalk! Although no turkey was served, it was still a feast to be thankful for! 🦃
#NASAhistory


#HappyBirthday to former NASA astronaut Guion Bluford! 🥳

Dr. Bluford was the 1st Black American astronaut in space in 1983, and was a mission specialist on four Space Shuttle missions: STS-8, 61A, 39, and 53.

Read Dr. Bluford's recollections: https://go.nasa.gov/3AvAWcq
#NASAhistory


An eclipse on the way home 📸

#OTD in 1969, Apollo 12 astronauts captured a photograph of the eclipse of the Sun on their return to Earth. The view was created when the Earth moved directly between the Sun and the Apollo 12 spacecraft.

Read more: https://go.nasa.gov/3XcSpzX
#NASAhistory


You won't want to miss this Twitter Spaces event tomorrow! Legendary Apollo Flight Director Gerry Griffin and our own NASA Historian Jennifer Ross-Nazzal will be part of the conversation.
#NASAhistory


As #Orion makes its closest lunar approach today, 53 years ago the Apollo 12 astronauts were in lunar orbit preparing to head back home! The Yankee Clipper command module performed a trans-Earth injection, leaving lunar orbit #OTD at 3:49 pm ET.

More https://go.nasa.gov/3EhV8Q5
#NASAhistory


#OTD in 1969, Apollo 12 astronauts Pete Conrad and Al Bean walked out to visit the inactive Surveyor 3 spacecraft that had been on the moon since 1967; collecting its TV camera, robotic scoop, and some cables, tubing, and glass for a return to Earth.
#NASAhistory


Back on Earth, scientists were initially perplexed when they were able to grow bacteria from swabs from the Surveyor 3 camera the Apollo 12 crew brought back!

Read the whole story in Chapter 6 of the e-book, 50 Years of Solar System Exploration: https://go.nasa.gov/3gd5Hfn
#NASAhistory


1972: A patch of dirt ➡️ Today: Preeminent air and space museum

#50YearsAgo today, officials broke ground on the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC! Have you visited @airandspace lately to see its many space and aeronautical artifacts from NASA history?
#NASAhistory


After astronaut Pete Conrad stuck the landing of the Apollo 12 Lunar Module #OTD in 1969, mere feet from Surveyor 3, his 1st word as he became the 3rd person to step on the Moon was "Whoopee!" He was so excited, he accidentally pointed his camera at the Sun, frying its circuits!
#NASAhistory

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