1959:
NASA’s X-15 hypersonic research plane, capable of speeds up to Mach 6.7, makes its first powered flight.
Sept. 18
1968:
The Soviet Union’s Zond 5 completes its circumnavigation of the Moon with a payload of various life forms on board. Launched Sept. 15,
it was recovered Sept. 21
from the Indian Ocean.
Sept. 19
1988:
Israel launches Ofeq 1, its first remote sensing satellite, aboard an Israeli Shavit rocket.
Sept. 20
1957:
The U.S. Air Force Thor Intermediate-Range Ballistic Missile successfully launches for the first time from Cape Canaveral, Fla.
1992:
The Space Shuttle Endeavour lands at Kennedy Space Center. During its STS-47
mission,
the crew delivered the Japanese Spacelab-J, a joint NASA and National Space Development Agency of Japan project that conducted 24 materials sciences and 20 biology microgravity experiments. The mission also marked several firsts: the first African-American woman in space, Mae Jemison; the first Japanese astronaut, Mamoru Mohri; and the first married couple in space, Jan Davis and Mark Lee.
2004:
The Indian Space Research Organisation launches Edus
at
on the premier flight of India’s three-stage Geostationary Space Launch Vehicle. Edusat enables classrooms in different schools and colleges to link together within India
.
Sept. 21
1970:
The Soviet Union’s Luna 16 lifts off from the Moon for its return to Earth after scooping a soil sample,
becoming the first successful automated lunar sample
retrieval mission.
Sept. 22
2006:
Hinode launches into polar Earth orbit aboard a Japanese M-V launch vehicle. Also known as Solar-B, the collaboration between the Japanese, European and U.S. space agencies was designed to capture 3-D profiles of solar activity.
