National Aeronautics and Space Administration
70 records
2010s
9 records
2012
Voyager 1 enters interstellar space
Voyager 1 crossed the heliopause and began sampling the interstellar environment.
2015
Dawn enters orbit around Ceres
Category: Mission Operations and MilestonesType: Orbit insertion
Mission: Dawn
Dawn reached Ceres orbit after its earlier orbital investigation of Vesta.
MESSENGER impacts Mercury
MESSENGER struck Mercury at 19:26 UT after exhausting its propellant.
New Horizons flies past Pluto
Category: Mission Operations and MilestonesType: Flyby
Mission: New Horizons
New Horizons completed the first close-range reconnaissance of Pluto and its moons.
2016
Juno enters orbit around Jupiter
Category: Mission Operations and MilestonesType: Orbit insertion
Mission: Juno
Juno entered Jupiter orbit after its journey from Earth.
2017
Cassini mission ends at Saturn
Cassini entered Saturn’s atmosphere in a planned final descent.
2018
Voyager 2 enters interstellar space
Voyager 2 crossed the heliopause into the interstellar environment.
OSIRIS-REx arrives at Bennu
NASA’s sample-return spacecraft reached asteroid Bennu.
2019
New Horizons flies past Arrokoth
Category: Mission Operations and MilestonesType: Flyby
Mission: New Horizons
New Horizons explored the Kuiper Belt object Arrokoth at close range.
2020s
11 records
2020
Founding nations sign the Artemis Accords
Category: Programs, Policy, and GovernanceType: International agreement
International: Artemis Accords
The United States and seven other founding nations signed the Artemis Accords.
OSIRIS-REx collects a Bennu sample
Category: Mission Operations and MilestonesType: Sample collection
Mission: OSIRIS-REx
The spacecraft touched Bennu’s surface and collected rock and dust.
2021
Perseverance lands on Mars
Category: Mission Operations and MilestonesType: Landing
Mission: Perseverance
Perseverance landed in Jezero Crater.
Ingenuity makes its first flight on Mars
Category: Spacecraft and Technology DevelopmentType: Technology demonstration
Mission: Ingenuity
Ingenuity achieved powered, controlled flight in the atmosphere of another planet.
OSIRIS-REx begins its return to Earth
The spacecraft departed Bennu carrying collected asteroid material.
2022
Webb reaches its L2 orbit
Category: Mission Operations and MilestonesType: Orbit insertion
Mission: Webb
An insertion maneuver placed Webb on its planned orbit around the Sun–Earth L2 region.
Webb’s first full science-image set released
Category: Discoveries and Scientific ResultsType: Result announcement
Mission: Webb
NASA and partners released Webb’s first full-color science images and spectra.
DART impacts Dimorphos
Category: Returns and Mission EndingsType: Controlled impact
Mission: DART
NASA's DART spacecraft intentionally struck Dimorphos to test asteroid deflection.
2023
OSIRIS-REx sample capsule lands
Category: Returns and Mission EndingsType: Sample return
Mission: OSIRIS-REx
The Bennu sample capsule landed in Utah for recovery and scientific study.
2024
New Horizons reaches 60 astronomical units
New Horizons passed a heliocentric distance 60 times Earth’s average distance from the Sun.
2026
Perseverance exceeds Opportunity’s driving distance
Perseverance passed Opportunity’s off-Earth driving record, reaching 45.22 kilometers on Mars.