24Exploring space
The Space Age began in 1957, with the launch
of Sputnik, the world’s first artificial satellite,
by the Soviet Union. In 1961, Yuri
Gagarin became the first person to
fly in space.
. LARGEST
OBJECT The
International Space
Station is the largest object
ever to orbit the Earth.
International Space Station (ISS)1950s 1960s
TIMELINE OF SPACE EXPLORATION
1957
First man-made
satellite, Sputnik,
in space.1959
First pictures
of the far side
of the Moon
(Luna 3).1963
First woman
in space,
Valentina
Tereshkova.1965
Alexei Leonov
makes first
space walk.1961
First human
in space,
Yuri Gagarin.FOOTBALL FIELD.
When it is finished in
2010, the ISS will be
about the size of a
football field.1969
First man to
walk on the
Moon, Neil
Armstrong.THE FIRST SPACE STATIONS
Space stations are places where people can
live and work in space for long periods of
time. The first space station, Salyut (Salute) 1,
was launched by the Soviet Union on April
19, 1971. Six more
Salyuts were launched
until 1986—two of
them mainly for
taking spy
photographs.SPACE
. SALYUT 7 SPACE
STATION The 22 ton
(20 metric ton) Salyut 7
space station was launched
in 1982 and burned up
during reentry in 1991.
■ Valeri Poliakov holds the record for the
longest space mission—437 days.
■ Mir flew just under 2 billion miles
(3 billion km) in its lifetime.
■ Mir space station was home to 111
people (1986–2001).
■ The shuttle Challenger blew up in 1986,
71 seconds after launch.
■ The shuttle Columbia broke apart during
its return to Earth in 2003.
■ About 160 space walks are required to
complete the International Space Station.
■ More than 90 percent of the world’s
population can see the ISS when it
flies overhead.
■ The ISS orbits Earth every 90 minutes.FAST FACTS
The International Space Station
is the most expensive and ambitious
space project ever flown. The 500
ton (450 metric ton), station is
being built in Earth orbit by the
US, Russia, Japan, Canada, and
11 European countries.