Chronology of
Space Exploration

Copyright © 2007-2024 Ken Polsson
internet e-mail: ken@kpolsson.com
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URL: http://kpolsson.com/space/

This document is an attempt to bring various published sources together to present a timeline about Space Exploration. This is a VERY early, quick timeline of the events involving outer space. The main source is a "today in history" that I have had since the 1980s, with updates through the 1990s. Depending on interest, I will be doing some proper research and adding detail.

References are numbered in [brackets], which are listed here. A number after the dot gives the page in the source.

Last updated: 2023 December 20.


June 4, 780 BCE

  • First total solar eclipse reliably recorded by Chinese. [1]

June 15, 763 BCE

  • Assyrians record total solar eclipse event on clay tablet. [1]

March 19, 721 BCE

  • First recorded lunar eclipse, seen in Babylon. [1]

April 22, 687 BCE

  • Chinese record a meteor shower in Lyra. [1]

April 6, 648 BCE

  • Earliest documented total solar eclipse; chronicled by Greeks. [1]

May 28, 585 BCE

  • Thales Miletus predicts solar eclipse; Persian-Lydian battle ends. [1]

March 30, 239 BCE

  • First recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet. [1]

May 22, 12 BCE

  • A daytime meteor shower, possibly Zeta Perseid observed in China. [1]

66

January 26
  • Fifth recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet. [1]

141

March 20
  • Sixth predicted perihelion passage of Halley's Comet. [1]

185

December 7
  • Emperor Lo-Yang, China sees supernova (MSH15-52?). [1]

218

May 17
  • Seventh recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet. [1]

295

April 20
  • Eighth recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet. [1]

374

February 16
  • Ninth recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet. [1]
April 1
  • Halley's Comet approaches within 0.0884 astronomical units (AUs) of Earth. [1]

451

June 24
  • Tenth recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet. [1]

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512

June 29
  • A monastic chronicler in Ireland records a solar eclipse. [5]

585

April 28
  • War between Lydia and Media ended by solar eclipse. [1]

607

March 13
  • Twelfth recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet. [1]
April 19
  • Comet 1P/607 H1 (Halley) approaches within 0.0898 astronomical units (AUs) of Earth. [1]

760

May 22
  • Fourteenth recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet. [1]

837

February 27
  • Fifteenth recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet. [1]
April 10
  • Comet 1P/837 F1 (Halley) approaches within 0.0334 astronomical units (AUs) of Earth, the closest in 2000 years. [1]

1006

April 30
  • Brightest supernova in recorded history is observed. [1] [1561.31]
May 1
  • Supernova observed by Chinese and Egyptians in constellation Lupus. [1]

1054

July 4
  • The Chinese, the Arabs and possibly Amerindians observe a bright supernova, the remnants of which form the Crab Nebula. [1] [5] [523.125] [1561.31]

1056

April 22
  • Supernova Crab nebula last seen by the naked eye. [1]

1066

March 23
  • 18th recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet. [1]

1145

April 22
  • 19th recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet. [1]

1178

June 18
  • In Canterbury, five men observe explosions on the Moon; likely the origin of lunar crater Giordano Bruno. [1] [521]

1181

August 4
  • Supernova seen in Cassiopia. [1] [1561.31]
August 6
  • Supernova observed by Chinese and Japanese astronomers. [1]

1264

October 3
  • Comet said to predict the death of Pope Urban IV is last seen. [1]

1275

March 4
  • Chinese astronomers observe a total eclipse of the sun. [5]

1345

March 20
  • Saturn/Jupiter/Mars-conjunction; thought "cause of plague epidemic". [1]

1456

June 9
  • 23rd recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet. [1]

1497

March 9
  • Nicolaus Copernicus first recorded astronomical observation. [1]

1504

February 29
  • Columbus uses a lunar eclipse to frighten hostile Jamaican Indians. [1]

1514

April 26
  • Copernicus makes his first observations of Saturn. [1]

1572

November 11
  • Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe observes a supernova (thought to be a bright star) in the constellation known as Casseopeia. [1427.11] [1561.31]

1576

May 23
  • Tycho Brahe given Hveen Island to build Uraniborg Observatory. [1]

1579

August 8
  • Cornerstone is laid for Tycho Brahe's Uraniborg observatory. [1]

1604

October 9
  • Supernova 1604 - the most recent supernova to be observed in the Milky Way - is seen with the naked eye for the first time. [5] [1561.31] [1588.19] (October 8 [1])

1610

January 1
  • German astronomer Simon Marius first discovers the Jupiter moons, but does not officially report it, Galileo does on July 1 1610. [1]
January 7
  • Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei discovers first three Jupiter satellites, Io, Europa and Ganymede. [1] [1615.10]
January 11
  • Galileo Galilei discovers Callisto, fourth satellite of Jupiter. [1615.10]

1612

December 15
  • Simon Marius, is first to observe Andromeda galaxy through a telescope. [1]
December 28
  • Galileo Galilei becomes the first astronomer to observe the planet Neptune, although he mistakenly catalogues it as a fixed star. [5] (January 29, 1613 [1])

1630

May 17
  • Italian Jesuit Niccolo Zucchi, first to see two belts on Jupiter surface. [1]

1631

November 7
  • Pierre Gassendi observes transit of Mercury predicted by Kepler. [1]
December 6
  • First predicted transit of Venus (Kepler) is observed. [1]

1633

February 13
  • Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei arrives in Rome for trial before Inquisition for professing belief that earth revolves around the Sun. [1] [5] [129]

1638

June 25
  • A lunar eclipse becomes the first astronomical event recorded in US. [1]

1639

December 4
  • Jeremiah Horrocks makes the first observation of a transit of Venus. [5] (November 24 [1])

1642

August 13
  • Christiaan Huygens discovers Martian south polar cap. [1]

1655

March 25
  • Christiaan Huygens discovers Titan, Saturn's largest moon. [1] [5]

1661

May 3
  • Johannes Hevelius observes third transit of Mercury ever to be seen. [1]

1662

September 16
  • Flamsteed sees solar eclipse, first known astronomical observation. [1]

1671

October 25
  • Giovanni Cassini discovers Iapetus, satellite of Saturn. [1]

1672

December 23
  • Giovanni Cassini discovers Rhea, a satellite of Saturn. [1]

1675

June 22
  • Royal Greenwich Observatory established in England by Charles II. [1]

1678

February 13
  • Tycho Brahe first sketches "Tychonic system" of solar system. [1]

1679

November 3
  • Great panic occurs in Europe over the close approach of a comet. [1]

1682

May 1
  • Louis XIV and his court inaugurate Paris Observatory. [1]

1686

August 18
  • Cassini reports seeing a satellite orbiting Venus. [1]

1690

December 23
  • John Flamsteed observes Uranus without realizing it is undiscovered. [1]

1702

April 20
  • Comet C/1702 H1 approaches within 0.0437 astronomical units (AUs) of Earth. [1]

1715

April 29
  • John Flamsteed observes Uranus for 6th time. [1]
May 3
  • Edmund Halley observes total eclipse phenomenon "Baily's Beads". [1]

1743

February 8
  • Comet C/1743 C1 approaches within 0.0390 astronomical units (AUs) of Earth. [1]

1753

May 6
  • French King Louis XV observes transit of Mercury at Mendon Castle. [1]

1758

December 25
  • Halley's comet first sighted by Johann Georg Palitzsch during return. [1]

1759

March 13
  • 27th recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet. [1]

1760

January 8
  • Comet C/1760 A1 (Great comet) approaches within 0.0682 astronomical units (AUs) of Earth. [1]

1774

January 11
  • Messier adds M51 (spiral galaxy in Canes Venatici) to his catalog. [1]
March 4
  • William Herschel becomes the first to sight the Orion Nebula. [1] [5]

1778

June 24
  • David Rittenhouse observes a total solar eclipse in Philadelphia. [1]

1779

January 23
  • Charles Messier catalogs M56 (globular cluster in Lyra). [1]
January 31
  • Charles Messier adds M57 (Ring Nebula in Lyra) to his catalog. [1]

1780

May 2
  • William Herschel discovers first binary star, Xi Ursae Majoris. [1]

1781

January 4
  • André Méchain discovers M80 (globular cluster in Scorpio). [1]
March 13
  • William Herschel in England first observes by telescope what is later (1850) named planet Uranus. [1665.30]

1783

February 1
  • William Herschel announces star Lambda Herculis as apex. [1]
May 4
  • William Herschel reports seeing a red glow near lunar crater Aristarchus. [1]

1787

January 11
  • William Herschel discovers Titania and Oberon, two moons of Uranus. [1] [5]
August 19
  • William Herschel discovers Enceladus, a moon of Saturn. [1]

1789

August 28
  • Sir William Herschel discovers Saturn's moon Enceladus. [1] [5]
September 17
  • William Herschel discovers Mimas, satellite of Saturn. [1]

1791

February 17
  • Messier catalogs M83 (spiral galaxy in Hydra). [1]

1801

  • The first asteroid is spotted in space. [526.118]

1802

March 28
  • Heinrich Wilhelm Matthäus Olbers discovers 2 Pallas, the second asteroid known to man. [5]

1803

April 26
  • A large shower of several thousand stony meteorites occurs near town of L'Aigle in Northern France. Physicist Jean-Baptiste Biot writes official report for French Ministry of Interior, that establishes acceptance that stones sometimes do fall to Earth. [1] [523.21] [526.117]

1805

December 9
  • Comet 3D/1805 V1 (Biela) approaches within 0.0366 astronomical units (AUs) of Earth. [1]

1819

July 4
  • William Herschel makes last telescopic observation of 1819 comet. [1]

1825

December 6
  • US President John Adams suggests establishment of a US observatory. [1]

1826

February 28
  • M Biela, an Austrian officer, discovers Biela's Comet. [1]

1835

August 25
  • The New York Sun publishes the first of six articles about life discovered on the Moon, attributed to astronomer John Herschel. (After several weeks the story is revealed to be a hoax, likely written by a writer for the New York Sun.) [1]

1836

May 15
  • Francis Baily observes "Baily's Beads" during annular solar eclipse. [1]

1838

June 12
  • Hopkins Observatory is dedicated in Williamstown, Massachusetts, USA. [1]

1839

January 2
  • First photo taken of the Moon (French photographer Louis Daguerre). [1]
January 9
  • Thomas Henderson measures first stellar parallax (Alpha Centauri). [1]
December 18
  • First celestial photograph (the moon) made in US, John Draper, New York City, New York. [1]

1840

March 23
  • Draper takes first successful photo of the Moon (daguerrotype). [1]

1841

July 3
  • John Couch Adams decides to determine the position of an unknown planet by irregularities it causes in the motion of Uranus. [1]

1842

April 13
  • Lord Rosse successfully casts 72-inch (183cm) mirror for a telescope. [1]
August 31
  • US Naval Observatory authorized by an act of Congress. [1]

1845

February 15
  • William Parsons, Earl of Rosse, first uses 72-inch (183 cm) reflector. [1]

1846

September 23
  • Johann Gottfried Galle and Heinrich d'Arrest find Neptune. [1]
October 10
  • Neptune's moon Triton is discovered by William Lassell. [1]

1847

July 1
  • Amateur astronomer M Hencke discovers second asteroid Hebe. [1] [1]
October 1
  • Maria Mitchell discovers a non-naked-eye comet. [1]

1848

September 19
  • William Cranch Bond (US) and William Lassell (England) independently discover Hyperion, moon of Saturn. [1] [845]

1849

December 18
  • William Bond obtains first photograph of Moon through a telescope. [1]

1850

July 17
  • Harvard Observatory takes first photograph of a star (Vega). [1]

1851

July 28
  • Total solar eclipse is captured on a daguerreotype photograph. [1]
July 29
  • A De Gasparis discovers asteroid #15 Eunomia. [1]
October 24
  • William Lassell discovers Ariel and Umbriel, satellites of Uranus. [1]

1852

June 24
  • J R Hind discovers asteroid #18 Melpomene. [1]

1853

April 29
  • Comet C/1853 G1 (Schweizer) approaches within 0.0839 astronomical units (AUs) of Earth. [1]
November 9
  • Origin of Carrington rotation numbers for rotation of the Sun. [1]

1854

June 10
  • Georg F.B. Reiman proposes that space is curved. [1]
July 22
  • J R Hind discovers asteroid #30 Urania. [1]

1857

March 25
  • Frederick Laggenheim takes first photo of a solar eclipse. [1]
June 27
  • H Goldschmidt discovers asteroid #45 Eugenia. [1]

1858

June 2
  • Donati Comet first seen, named after its discoverer. [1]
September 28
  • Donati's comet is the first to be photographed. [1]

1859

March 26
  • First sighting of Vulcan, a planet thought to orbit inside Mercury. [1]
September 1
  • RC Carrington and R Hodgson make first observation of solar flare. [1]
October 19
  • Wilhelm Tempel discovers diffuse nebula around Pleid star Merope. [1]
December 15
  • GR Kirchoff describes chemical composition of Sun. [1]

1861

June 28
  • Leipzig Observatory discovers short-period (6.2 years) Comet d'Arrest. [1]

1862

January 31
  • Telescope maker Alvin Clark discovers dwarf companion of Sirius. [1]
July 16
  • Lewis Swift in Marathon, New York, USA, discovers a comet in constellation of Camelopardalis. [801.111]
July 19
  • Horace Parnell Tuttle at Harvard College Observatory independently discovers a comet in constellation of Camelopardalis. (The comet is later named 109p Swift-Tuttle.) [801.111]

1864

August 5
  • Spectrum of a comet observed for first time, by Giovanni Donati. [1]

1866

June 15
  • C H F Peters discovers asteroid #88 Thisbe. [1]

1867

July 7
  • C H F Peters discovers asteroid #92 Undina. [1]

1868

July 11
  • J C Watson discovers asteroid #100 Hekate. [1]
August 18
  • Pierre Janssan discovers helium in solar spectrum during eclipse. [1]

1870

December 22
  • Jules Janssen flies in a balloon in order to study a solar eclipse. [1]

1871

July 23
  • C H F Peters discovers asteroid #114 Kassandra. [1]
December 12
  • Jules Janssen discovers dark lines in solar corona spectrum. [1]

1872

July 31
  • C H F Peters discovers asteroids #122 Gerda and #123 Brunhild. [1]

1873

June 13
  • J C Watson discovers asteroid #132 Aethra. [1]

1875

June 3
  • C H F Peters discovers asteroid #144 Vibilia and #145 Adeona. [1]
June 8
  • A Borrelly discovers asteroid #146 Lucina. [1]
July 10
  • L Schulhof discovers asteroid #147 Protogeneia. [1]

1876

July 12
  • Paul Henry discovers asteroid #164 Eva. [1]

1877

August 12
  • Asaph Hall discovers Deimos, the smaller of Mars' two moons. [1] [5]
August 17
  • Asaph Hall discovers Mars' moon Phobos. [1]

1878

June 18
  • C H F Peters discovers asteroid #188 Menippe. [1]

1879

June 13
  • A Borrelly discovers asteroid #198 Ampella. [1]
July 9
  • C H F Peters discovers asteroid #199 Byblis. [1]
July 27
  • C H F Peters discovers asteroid #200 Dynamene. [1]

1880

September 30
  • Henry Draper takes first photograph of the Orion Nebula. [1]

1882

July 4
  • Telegraph Hill Observatory opens in San Francisco, California. [1]
July 19
  • J Palisa discovers asteroid #226 Weringia. [1]
December 6
  • Atmosphere of planet Venus detected during transit. [1]

1884

June 27
  • J Palisa discovers asteroid #237 Coelestina. [1]
July 1
  • V Knorre discovers asteroid #238 Hypatia. [1]

1885

June 5
  • J Palisa discovers asteroid #248 Lameia. [1]
August 30
  • 13,000 meteors seen in one hour near Andromeda. [1]
November 27
  • Earliest photograph of a meteor shower is made. [1]

1886

June 28
  • C H F Peters discovers asteroid #259 Aletheia. [1]

1887

June 8
  • A Borrelly discovers asteroid #268 Adorea. [1]

1890

July 15
  • A Charlois discovers asteroid #294 Felicia. [1]

1891

June 11
  • A Charlois discovers asteroid #311 Claudia. [1]

1892

September 9
  • Almalthea, 5th moon of Jupiter, discovered by EE Barnard at Lick. [1]

1893

July 4
  • A Borrelly discovers asteroid #369 Aeria. [1]
July 14
  • A Charlois discovers asteroid #370 Modestia. [1]
July 16
  • A Charlois discovers asteroid #371 Bohemia. [1]

1895

June 20
  • A Charlois discovers asteroid #404 Arsinoe. [1]
July 23
  • A Charlois discovers asteroid #405 Thia. [1]

1897

May 21
  • Yerkes Observatory 40-inch (1-metre) refractor used for first time. [1]
October 21
  • Yerkes Observatory of the University of Chicago is dedicated. [1]

1898

July 16
  • A Charlois discovers asteroid #437 Rhodia. [1]

1899

March 18
  • Phoebe, a moon of Saturn, is discovered by Pickering. [1]

End of Start to 1899. Next: 1900.

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start-1899 1900-1949 1950-1964 1965-1969 1970-1974 1975-1979 1980-1984 1985-1989 1990-1994 1995-1999
2000-2004 2005-2009 2010-end


A list of references to all source material is available.


Last updated: 2023 December 20.
Copyright © 2007-2024 Ken Polsson (email: ken@kpolsson.com).
URL: http://kpolsson.com/space/
Link to Ken P's home page.

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