50 Years of Human Spaceflight

SPACE www.space.com 50 YEARS OF HUMAN SPACEFLIGHT Beginning with Russian pilot Yuri Gagarin in 1961, more than 500 people have been launched into space in a variety of vessels. Twelve people have walked on the moon, and an additional 14 have flown over the moon without landing. VEHICLE S OF THE EARLY SPACE AGE Shown to scale. Human figures represent the number of passengers in each spacecraft. 10 Spacecraft First flight Length oveřal Total flights* Builder Objective Vostok USSR 1961 14.4 ft (4.4 m) First human spaceflight 2 Mercury 3 X-15 4 Voskhod 11.5 ft (3.51 m) 1962 50.75 ft (15.45 m) USA 1961 Suborbital and Earth orbit flights USA 2 Airplane traveling to the edge of space USSR 1964 16.4 ft (5 m) Vostok modified to hold more people 5 Gemini USA 1965 19 ft. (5.7 m) 24.54 ft (7.48 m) 59 ft (18 m) 10 Developed for Earth-orbit rendezvous Developed for Soviet moon program 6 Soyuz 7 Apollo USSR 1967 109 USA 1968 12 Achieved first moon landing 8 Space Shuttle 9 Shenzhou USA 1981 122 ft (37.2 m) 132 Regular ferry service to Earth orbit China 2003 30.3 ft (9.25 m) 3 Developed Chinese space technology 10 SpaceShipOne Scaled 2004 28 ft (8.53 m) 3 First commercial suborbital flights Composites Totals as of April 12, 2011 *Suborbital, Earth orbital or lunar flights HOW FAR INTO SPACE HAVE WE GONE? Moon The farthest away that humans have traveled so far was 248,655 mi (400,171 km), which was achieved by the Apollo 13 astronauts on April 15, 1970. APOLLO 13- Earth-moon distance to scale The highest Earth orbit (non-lunar mission) was 853.8 mi (1,374.1 km) in altitude, achieved by the Gemini 11 astronauts on Sept. 14, 1966. GEMINI 11 Earth orbit to scale SPACE STATIONS: OUTPOSTS IN EARTH ORBIT SKYLAB MIR DOCKED WITH SHUTTLE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION The spaceflight of longest duration to date was cosmonaut Valeriy Polyakov's 437.7 days aboard Mir in 1994/1995. Launched Length oveřall Number launched Program Builder 1 Salyut 2 Almaz Notes 43 ft (13.1 m) 36 ft (11 m) USSR 1971 3** World's first crewed space stations USSR 1973 3 Military version of Salyut 3 Skylab USA 1973 118.4 ft (36.1 m) Converted 3rd stage of Saturn V rocket Mir USSR 1986 108 ft (32.9 m) 1 Multi-module station 5 ISS US/Russia/Europel 1998 Japan/Canada 357.5 ft. (109 m) Multinational cooperative station "Launch of first in series or launch of first component of multi-module station "Not including the military Almaz stations that were called "Salyut" at the time SOURCES: ROSCOSMOS, NASA, CBS NEWS SPACE PLACE http://www.braeunig.us/ KARL TATE / SPACE.com SPACE www.space.com 50 YEARS OF HUMAN SPACEFLIGHT Beginning with Russian pilot Yuri Gagarin in 1961, more than 500 people have been launched into space in a variety of vessels. Twelve people have walked on the moon, and an additional 14 have flown over the moon without landing. VEHICLE S OF THE EARLY SPACE AGE Shown to scale. Human figures represent the number of passengers in each spacecraft. 10 Spacecraft First flight Length oveřal Total flights* Builder Objective 1 Vostok USSR 1961 14.4 ft (4.4 m) 6 First human spaceflight 2 Mercury З Х15 4 Voskhod 11.5 ft (3.51 m) 1962 50.75 ft (15.45 m) USA 1961 6 Suborbital and Earth orbit flights USA 2 Airplane traveling to the edge of space USSR 1964 16.4 ft (5 m) 2 Vostok modified to hold more people 5 Gemini USA 1965 19 ft. (5.7 m) 24.54 ft (7.48 m) 59 ft (18 m) 10 Developed for Earth-orbit rendezvous Developed for Soviet moon program 6 Soyuz 7 Apollo USSR 1967 109 USA 1968 12 Achieved first moon landing 8 Space Shuttle 9 Shenzhou USA 1981 122 ft (37.2 m) 132 Regular ferry service to Earth orbit China 2003 30.3 ft (9.25 m) 3 Developed Chinese space technology 10 SpaceShipOne Scaled 2004 28 ft (8.53 m) 3 First commercial suborbital flights Composites Totals as of April 12, 2011 *Suborbital, Earth orbital or lunar flights HOW FAR INTO SPACE HAVE WE GONE? Moon The farthest away that humans have traveled so far was 248,655 mi (400,171 km), which was achieved by the Apollo 13 astronauts on April 15, 1970. APOLLO 13- Earth-moon distance to scale The highest Earth orbit (non-lunar mission) was 853.8 mi (1,374.1 km) in altitude, achieved by the Gemini 11 astronauts on Sept. 14, 1966. GEMINI 11 Earth orbit to scale SPACE STATIONS: OUTPOSTS IN EARTH ORBIT SKYLAB MIR DOCKED WITH SHUTTLE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION The spaceflight of longest duration to date was cosmonaut Valeriy Polyakov's 437.7 days aboard Mir in 1994/1995. Launched Length oveřall Number launched Program Builder 1 Salyut 2 Almaz Notes 43 ft (13.1 m) 36 ft (11 m) USSR 1971 3** World's first crewed space stations USSR 1973 3 Military version of Salyut 3 Skylab USA 1973 118.4 ft (36.1 m) 1 Converted 3rd stage of Saturn V rocket 4 Mir USSR 1986 108 ft (32.9 m) 1 Multi-module station 5 ISS US/Russia/Europel 1998 Japan/Canada 357.5 ft. (109 m) 1 Multinational cooperative station "Launch of first in series or launch of first component of multi-module station "Not including the military Almaz stations that were called "Salyut" at the time SOURCES: ROSCOSMOS, NASA, CBS NEWS SPACE PLACE http://www.braeunig.us/ KARL TATE / SPACE.com SPACE www.space.com 50 YEARS OF HUMAN SPACEFLIGHT Beginning with Russian pilot Yuri Gagarin in 1961, more than 500 people have been launched into space in a variety of vessels. Twelve people have walked on the moon, and an additional 14 have flown over the moon without landing. VEHICLE S OF THE EARLY SPACE AGE Shown to scale. Human figures represent the number of passengers in each spacecraft. 10 Spacecraft First flight Length oveřal Total flights* Builder Objective 1 Vostok USSR 1961 14.4 ft (4.4 m) 6 First human spaceflight 2 Mercury З Х15 4 Voskhod 11.5 ft (3.51 m) 1962 50.75 ft (15.45 m) USA 1961 6 Suborbital and Earth orbit flights USA 2 Airplane traveling to the edge of space USSR 1964 16.4 ft (5 m) 2 Vostok modified to hold more people 5 Gemini USA 1965 19 ft. (5.7 m) 24.54 ft (7.48 m) 59 ft (18 m) 10 Developed for Earth-orbit rendezvous Developed for Soviet moon program 6 Soyuz 7 Apollo USSR 1967 109 USA 1968 12 Achieved first moon landing 8 Space Shuttle 9 Shenzhou USA 1981 122 ft (37.2 m) 132 Regular ferry service to Earth orbit China 2003 30.3 ft (9.25 m) 3 Developed Chinese space technology 10 SpaceShipOne Scaled 2004 28 ft (8.53 m) 3 First commercial suborbital flights Composites Totals as of April 12, 2011 *Suborbital, Earth orbital or lunar flights HOW FAR INTO SPACE HAVE WE GONE? Moon The farthest away that humans have traveled so far was 248,655 mi (400,171 km), which was achieved by the Apollo 13 astronauts on April 15, 1970. APOLLO 13- Earth-moon distance to scale The highest Earth orbit (non-lunar mission) was 853.8 mi (1,374.1 km) in altitude, achieved by the Gemini 11 astronauts on Sept. 14, 1966. GEMINI 11 Earth orbit to scale SPACE STATIONS: OUTPOSTS IN EARTH ORBIT SKYLAB MIR DOCKED WITH SHUTTLE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION The spaceflight of longest duration to date was cosmonaut Valeriy Polyakov's 437.7 days aboard Mir in 1994/1995. Launched Length oveřall Number launched Program Builder 1 Salyut 2 Almaz Notes 43 ft (13.1 m) 36 ft (11 m) USSR 1971 3** World's first crewed space stations USSR 1973 3 Military version of Salyut 3 Skylab USA 1973 118.4 ft (36.1 m) 1 Converted 3rd stage of Saturn V rocket 4 Mir USSR 1986 108 ft (32.9 m) 1 Multi-module station 5 ISS US/Russia/Europel 1998 Japan/Canada 357.5 ft. (109 m) 1 Multinational cooperative station "Launch of first in series or launch of first component of multi-module station "Not including the military Almaz stations that were called "Salyut" at the time SOURCES: ROSCOSMOS, NASA, CBS NEWS SPACE PLACE http://www.braeunig.us/ KARL TATE / SPACE.com SPACE www.space.com 50 YEARS OF HUMAN SPACEFLIGHT Beginning with Russian pilot Yuri Gagarin in 1961, more than 500 people have been launched into space in a variety of vessels. Twelve people have walked on the moon, and an additional 14 have flown over the moon without landing. VEHICLE S OF THE EARLY SPACE AGE Shown to scale. Human figures represent the number of passengers in each spacecraft. 10 Spacecraft First flight Length oveřal Total flights* Builder Objective 1 Vostok USSR 1961 14.4 ft (4.4 m) 6 First human spaceflight 2 Mercury З Х15 4 Voskhod 11.5 ft (3.51 m) 1962 50.75 ft (15.45 m) USA 1961 6 Suborbital and Earth orbit flights USA 2 Airplane traveling to the edge of space USSR 1964 16.4 ft (5 m) 2 Vostok modified to hold more people 5 Gemini USA 1965 19 ft. (5.7 m) 24.54 ft (7.48 m) 59 ft (18 m) 10 Developed for Earth-orbit rendezvous Developed for Soviet moon program 6 Soyuz 7 Apollo USSR 1967 109 USA 1968 12 Achieved first moon landing 8 Space Shuttle 9 Shenzhou USA 1981 122 ft (37.2 m) 132 Regular ferry service to Earth orbit China 2003 30.3 ft (9.25 m) 3 Developed Chinese space technology 10 SpaceShipOne Scaled 2004 28 ft (8.53 m) 3 First commercial suborbital flights Composites Totals as of April 12, 2011 *Suborbital, Earth orbital or lunar flights HOW FAR INTO SPACE HAVE WE GONE? Moon The farthest away that humans have traveled so far was 248,655 mi (400,171 km), which was achieved by the Apollo 13 astronauts on April 15, 1970. APOLLO 13- Earth-moon distance to scale The highest Earth orbit (non-lunar mission) was 853.8 mi (1,374.1 km) in altitude, achieved by the Gemini 11 astronauts on Sept. 14, 1966. GEMINI 11 Earth orbit to scale SPACE STATIONS: OUTPOSTS IN EARTH ORBIT SKYLAB MIR DOCKED WITH SHUTTLE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION The spaceflight of longest duration to date was cosmonaut Valeriy Polyakov's 437.7 days aboard Mir in 1994/1995. Launched Length oveřall Number launched Program Builder 1 Salyut 2 Almaz Notes 43 ft (13.1 m) 36 ft (11 m) USSR 1971 3** World's first crewed space stations USSR 1973 3 Military version of Salyut 3 Skylab USA 1973 118.4 ft (36.1 m) 1 Converted 3rd stage of Saturn V rocket 4 Mir USSR 1986 108 ft (32.9 m) 1 Multi-module station 5 ISS US/Russia/Europel 1998 Japan/Canada 357.5 ft. (109 m) 1 Multinational cooperative station "Launch of first in series or launch of first component of multi-module station "Not including the military Almaz stations that were called "Salyut" at the time SOURCES: ROSCOSMOS, NASA, CBS NEWS SPACE PLACE http://www.braeunig.us/ KARL TATE / SPACE.com