List of human spaceflights, 1971–1980

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This is a detailed list of human spaceflights from 1971 to 1980, including the later Apollo Moon landings, the US Skylab missions, and the start of the Soviet Union's Salyut series of space stations.

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A chart showing relative accomplishments in human spaceflights (along with probes) visually graphing how the U.S. had far surpassed the Soviet Union in the 1970s with lunar missions, yet lagged years behind in space station activity. Space Race 1957-1975.jpg
A chart showing relative accomplishments in human spaceflights (along with probes) visually graphing how the U.S. had far surpassed the Soviet Union in the 1970s with lunar missions, yet lagged years behind in space station activity.
A chart showing U.S. astronaut assignments during the 1970s as graduated from the Mercury and Gemini programs. AstronautAssignmentsChart.PNG
A chart showing U.S. astronaut assignments during the 1970s as graduated from the Mercury and Gemini programs.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skylab</span> First space station launched and operated by NASA (1973–1979)

Skylab was the United States' first space station, launched by NASA, occupied for about 24 weeks between May 1973 and February 1974. It was operated by three trios of astronaut crews: Skylab 2, Skylab 3, and Skylab 4. Operations included an orbital workshop, a solar observatory, Earth observation and hundreds of experiments. Skylab's orbit eventually decayed and it disintegrated in the atmosphere on July 11, 1979, scattering debris across the Indian Ocean and Western Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alan Bean</span> American astronaut and lunar explorer (1932–2018)

Alan LaVern Bean was an American naval officer and aviator, aeronautical engineer, test pilot, NASA astronaut and painter. He was selected to become an astronaut by NASA in 1963 as part of Astronaut Group 3, and was the fourth person to walk on the Moon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skylab 3</span> Second crewed mission to Skylab

Skylab 3 was the second crewed mission to the first American space station, Skylab. The mission began on July 28, 1973, with the launch of NASA astronauts Alan Bean, Owen Garriott, and Jack Lousma in the Apollo command and service module on the Saturn IB rocket, and lasted 59 days, 11 hours and 9 minutes. A total of 1,084.7 astronaut-utilization hours were tallied by the Skylab 3 crew performing scientific experiments in the areas of medical activities, solar observations, Earth resources, and other experiments.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Don Lind</span> American astronaut (1930–2022)

Don Leslie Lind was an American scientist, naval officer, aviator, and NASA astronaut. He graduated from the University of Utah with an undergraduate degree in physics in 1953. Following his military service obligation, he earned a PhD in high-energy nuclear physics from the University of California, Berkeley in 1964.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skylab 4</span> Third crewed mission to Skylab

Skylab 4 was the third crewed Skylab mission and placed the third and final crew aboard the first American space station.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maspalomas Station</span> Radio antenna ground station in Spain

Maspalomas Station is an INTA-operated, ESTRACK radio antenna ground station for communication with spacecraft located at the southern area of Gran Canaria island, on the INTA campus. It is situated on the Montaña Blanca hill and is visible from the coastal resort of Meloneras, close to Maspalomas. It was originally established in the 1960s to support NASA's nascent human spaceflight program.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Space Center Houston</span> Science museum at NASA Space Center, Houston, Texas

Space Center Houston is a science museum that serves as the official visitor center of NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. It was designated a Smithsonian Affiliate museum in 2014. The organization is owned by NASA, and operated under a contract by the nonprofit Manned Spaceflight Education Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization. The Johnson Space Center is the home of Mission Control and astronaut training.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of spaceflight</span>

Spaceflight began in the 20th century following theoretical and practical breakthroughs by Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, Robert H. Goddard, and Hermann Oberth, each of whom published works proposing rockets as the means for spaceflight. The first successful large-scale rocket programs were initiated in Nazi Germany by Wernher von Braun. The Soviet Union took the lead in the post-war Space Race, launching the first satellite, the first animal, the first human and the first woman into orbit. The United States landed the first men on the Moon in 1969. Through the late 20th century, France, the United Kingdom, Japan, and China were also working on projects to reach space.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Space Task Group</span> Group of NASA engineers working on the human spaceflight program starting in 1958

The Space Task Group was a working group of NASA engineers created in 1958, tasked with managing America's human spaceflight programs. Headed by Robert Gilruth and based at the Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, it managed Project Mercury and follow-on plans. After President John F. Kennedy set the goal in 1961 for the Apollo Program to land a man on the Moon and bring him back safely to Earth, NASA decided a much larger organization and a new facility was required to perform the Task Group's function, and it was transformed into the Manned Spacecraft Center, located in Houston, Texas.

With the advent of robotic and human spaceflight a new era of American history had presented itself. Keeping with the tradition of honoring the country's history on U.S. postage stamps, the U.S. Post Office began commemorating the various events with its commemorative postage stamp issues. The first U.S. Postage issue to depict a U.S. space vehicle was issued in 1948, the Fort Bliss issue. The first issue to commemorate a space project by name was the ECHO I communications satellite commemorative issue of 1960. Next was the Project Mercury issue of 1962. As U.S. space exploration progressed a variety of other commemorative issues followed, many of which bear accurate depictions of satellites, space capsules, Apollo Lunar Modules, space suits, and other items of interest.

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