45 Years Ago -- 1961

Jan. 31: Samos 2 orbited, 3:23 p.m., EST, WSMC, CA.

Jan. 31: Mercury Redstone 2 (MR-2), launched 11:54 a.m., EST, ESMC. Monkeynaut Ham aboard.

40 Years Ago -- 1966

Jan. 14: Sergei P. Korolev died, USSR.

Jan. 20: Little Joe II launched, 8:17 a.m., MST, WSMR, NM. Apollo launch escape system development test.

Jan. 31: Luna 9 Launch ( USSR Moon Lander). F irst successful soft landing on the Moon.

35 Years Ago --1971

Jan. 20: Meteor 7 lifted off, 1131 UT, Baikonur, USSR.

Jan. 31: Apollo 14 launched at 4:03 p.m., EST, Launch Complex 39, Pad A, KSC. Astronauts Alan B. Shepard Jr., Stuart A. Roosa, and Edgar D. Mitchell land in Frau Mauro region of the moon. This was the last lunar crew to be quarantined.

30 Years Ago -- 1976

Jan. 15: Helios 2 orbited, 12:34 a.m., EST, ESMC.

Jan. 17: CTS-1 launched at 6:27 p.m., EST, ESMC.

Jan. 29: Intelsat IVA F-2 orbited 6:56 p.m., EST, ESMC.

20 Years Ago -- 1986

Jan. 12: STS-61C (Space Shuttle Columbia) launched at 6:55 a.m., EST, KSC. Astronauts: "Hoot" Gibson, Charles Bolden, Franklin Chang-Diaz, Pinky Nelson, Steve Hawley, Bob Cenker, and Congressman Bill Nelson. Deployment of SATCOM Ku-1. Landed Edwards AFB, CA Jan. 18, 8:58 a.m., EST. Mission duration: 6 days, 2 hours, and 3 minutes.

Franklin Chang-Diaz became first U.S. Hispanic male in space. First member of U.S. House of representatives in space, Bill Nelson.

Jan. 12: RCA Satcom KU-1 launched from STS 61C.

Jan. 24: Voyager 2, Uranus Flyby.

Jan. 28: Challenger Accident – STS-51L (Space Shuttle Challenger) launched at 11:38 a.m., EST, KSC. Astronauts: Dick Scobee, Mike Smith, Ellison Onizuka, Judith Resnik, Ron McNair, Christa McAuliffe (Schoolteacher in Space), and Greg Jarvis. 73 seconds into the flight an explosion destroyed the external tanks and orbiter Challenger. All seven crew members died. TDRS satellite in cargo bay also lost. See http://history.nasa.gov/sts51l.html for more information.

10 Years Ago – 1996

Jan. 11: STS-72 (Space Shuttle Endeavour) launched at 4:41 a.m. EST, KSC. Astronauts Brian Duffy, Brent W. Jett, Leroy Chiao, Daniel T. Barry, Winston E. Scott, and Koichi Wakata. Mission objectives included the capture and return to Earth of a Japanese microgravity research spacecraft known as Space Flyer Unit (SFU) and also the deployment and retrieval of the Office of Aeronautics and Space Technology Flyer (OAST-Flyer) spacecraft. Landed January 20, 1996 at 2:41 a.m. at KSC. Mission duration: 8 days, 22 hours, 1 minute.

 5 Years Ago -- 2001

Jan. 9: Shenzhou 2 (translated as "Divine Ship", or "Magic Vessel", or "God Vessel") is an unmanned Chinese (PRC) spacecraft that was launched by a Long March 2F rocket from Jiuquan launch center (in the north-western province of Gansu) at "01:00 a.m.".

Jan. 16: The descent module (also carrying the name, Shenzhou 2) landed smoothly in Inner Mongolia on 16 January at 11:22 UT after separating from the orbiter.

Colin Fries, Author
Steven J. Dick, NASA Chief Historian
Steve Garber, NASA History Web Curator
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For further information email histinfo@hq.nasa.gov