1957
Sputnik 1
WORLDThe first artificial satellite reaches orbit — the opening pulse of the Space Age.
01 // SPACE · MISSION LOG
Space
From the first pulse of 1957 to a crewed lunar landing already on the calendar. This is a mission log still being written — every line, an ignition carrying humanity out of the cradle.
◦ WORLD MILESTONES◦ CN CHINA AEROSPACE◦ FUTURE PLANNED
CH.1 // 1957 — 1970
First Light
The first satellite, the first human, the first footprint — humanity pushes open the cradle door.
1961
Vostok 1
WORLDYuri Gagarin circles the Earth once — humanity's first look at home from beyond the sky.
1969
Apollo 11
WORLD"One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." The first footprint on the Moon.
1970
Dongfanghong-1
CNChina's first satellite carries the song The East Is Red into low Earth orbit.
CH.2 // 1971 — 1998
The Long Voyage
Space stations, interstellar probes and telescopes — exploration becomes a marathon, not a sprint.
1971
Salyut 1
WORLDThe first space station — long-duration life in orbit begins.
1977
Voyager 1
WORLDLaunched with the Golden Record; now beyond the heliosphere, still calling home.
1990
Hubble Space Telescope
WORLDAn eye opened above the atmosphere that rewrote our picture of the universe.
1998
International Space Station
WORLDZarya, the first module, reaches orbit — a multinational outpost begins construction.
CH.3 // 2003 — 2015
The Relay
China accelerates into crewed flight and lunar exploration; commercial rockets ignite the reusable revolution.
2003
Shenzhou 5
CNYang Liwei orbits Earth 14 times — China becomes the third nation to fly humans on its own.
2007
Chang'e 1
CNChina's first lunar orbiter — step one of "orbit, land, return".
2008
Shenzhou 7
CNZhai Zhigang waves the flag outside the hatch — China's first spacewalk.
2013
Chang'e 3
CNYutu rolls onto Sinus Iridum — China's first soft landing on another world.
2015
Falcon 9 Landing
WORLDAn orbital-class booster lands upright for the first time — the reusable era begins.
CH.4 // 2019 — NOW
Deep Space Era
Far side, Mars, sample returns, permanent stations — deep space becomes a workplace.
2019
Chang'e 4
CNThe first soft landing on the Moon's far side, with the Queqiao relay watching from beyond.
2020
Chang'e 5
CN1,731 grams of lunar soil return to Earth — "orbit, land, return" complete.
2021
Tianwen 1
CNOrbit, land and rove in a single mission — Zhurong drives onto Utopia Planitia.
2021
James Webb Space Telescope
WORLDGolden mirrors unfold at L2, looking back toward the universe's first light.
2022
Tiangong Space Station
CNThe T-shaped station is complete — a permanently crewed Chinese home in orbit.
2024
Chang'e 6
CNThe first samples ever returned from the Moon's far side.
CH.5 // FUTURE
What’s Next
A future already on the schedule: sample returns, crewed landings, a lunar research station.
~2028
Tianwen 3
FUTUREA planned Mars sample-return — bringing rocks home from another planet.
~2030
Crewed Lunar Landing
FUTUREChina's crewed lunar program aims to land astronauts on the Moon before 2030.
2030s
International Lunar Research Station
FUTUREA long-term research base anchored at the lunar south pole — from visiting to staying.
NEXT ENTRY // TO BE CONTINUED
The next line of the log is being written.