October’s Historical Events in Space Exploration
October 13 1773
Charles Messier discovers the object M51, the Whirlpool Galaxy. It is located in the constellation Canes Venatici.
October 1945
In an article written by Arthur Clarke for a publication in Wireless World, a UK technical publication, covers the possibility of “Geostationary Satellites” to be used as communication devices. A precursor to modern GPS satellites and various other communications systems.
October 24 1946
On this date, the US launched a modified V-2 rocket. Aboard was a camera that took the first black and white pictures of Earth from space. It was at a height of 65mi above the Earth’s surface.
October 5 1954
The first color picture of Earth from space was a composite taken from specially modified cameras aboard a sounding rocket. In the photo is also the first time a tropical cyclone was photographed.
October 4 1957
The USSR was the first country to successfully launch an artificial satellite into space. Sputnik 1 was about the size of a basketball with 4 large antennas protruding from it. It produced the first human-made signals from space.
October 4 1959
Yes! There is really a “Dark Side of the Moon”! The first photos of the dark side were taken by a Soviet spacecraft called “Luna 3”.
October 12 1964
The USSR launched a spacecraft called “Voskhod 1”. It carried three crewmembers aboard and became the first multi-person crewed ship in space.
October 30 1967
On this date, the USSR pulled off another feat of docking the two spacecraft, Cosmos 186 and Cosmos 188 in space. This was significant because it did not require a crew to do it.
October 20 1975
While most spacecraft were being aimed to travel away from the Sun, the Soviet Venera 9 orbiter/lander was the first to orbit and land on the surface of Venus. It sent back the first photographs of the planets surface.
Not so “Historical”, but Significant Events
October 21 1991
The USA sent a spacecraft named Galileo to study Jupiter and its moons. It also conducted the first flybys of an asteroid, Gaspra 951. Its closest approach was approximately 990 miles.
October 22 2010
Nasa’s Artemis-P2 spacecraft became the first to successfully orbit the Moons Lagrange 1 point. This point is between the Earth and Moon. The gravitational forces between the two are in equilibrium in this region.
October 19 2017
On this date, the first interstellar object named “Oumuamau” was detected as it passed through our Solar System.
October 13 2024
SpaceX was able to “catch” a rocket booster on its return to Earth.