Apollo programme A series of US expeditions between 1961 and 1972, that eventually landed the first man on the Moon. Apollo 11 landed on the Moon on 20th July 1969. Five further Apollo missions landed astronauts on the Moon.

Ariane A family of rocket-powered launch vehicles used for launching spacecraft and satellites into orbit. Ariane rockets are expendable, designed to be used only once. An Ariane 1 rocket was first launched successfully in 1979, by the European Space Agency (ESA). Ariane 6 is first launched in 2024.

Armstrong, Neil (1930–2012) American astronaut who became the first man to walk on the Moon in July 1969.

Artemis programme A Moon exploration programme led by NASA to re-establish a human presence on the Moon for the first time since the Apollo 17 mission in 1972. The long-term goal of Artemis is to establish a permanent base on the Moon from which to launch human missions to Mars.

Cassini–Huygens A probe launched in 1997 to study Saturn and its rings and moons. In 2005, the Cassini probe released the Huygens lander, which landed on Saturn’s moon, Titan. A parachute was deployed to slow the lander’s descent and permit a soft landing. Cassini later undertook a fly-by of Enceladus, before being deliberately crashed into Saturn in September 2017 to end the mission.

Chandrayaan programme Also known as the Indian Lunar Exploration Programme, a series of space missions by the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) for the exploration of the Moon. There have been three missions so far, with Chandrayaan-3 successfully landing on the Moon on 23rd August 2023, making India the first nation to successfully land a spacecraft in the lunar south pole region.

Chang'e Project The Chinese Lunar Exploration Programme, a series of robotic Moon missions by the China National Space Administration (CNSA). The programme uses Chang'e spacecraft—lunar orbiters, landers, rovers and sample return spacecraft—launched using Long March rockets. A crewed lunar landing is planned by the year 2030. There are also plans to build a scientific research station at the Moon's south pole.

Columbia The first reusable spacecraft, or Space Shuttle, first launched from the US in 1981. It flew on 28 separate missions.

Falcon 9 A launch vehicle designed and manufactured by US company SpaceX. The Full Thrust version is partially reusable, with the first rocket stage capable of re-entering the atmosphere and landing vertically after separating from the second stage. This was achieved for the first time in December 2015. The latest version, Block 5, first flew in May 2018.

Gagarin, Yuri (1934–1968) Russian astronaut who became the first man in space in April 1961.

Galileo US space probe that, in 1995, became the first to orbit Jupiter. It carried a small descent probe, which was released into Jupiter’s atmosphere.

Gemini 7 The first flight by a manned spacecraft to last more than a few days. The flight took place in 1965. Gemini 7's purpose was to discover the effects of prolonged space travel on the human body.

Goddard, Robert (1882–1945) American inventor who built the world’s first liquid-fuelled rocket in 1926. Using liquid gases for fuel, it reached a height of 12.5 metres (41 feet).

Hubble Space Telescope A telescope that orbits the Earth as a satellite. Hubble was launched into space in 1990. The pictures it receives are unaffected by weather or pollution that can reduce the quality of images taken by Earth-based telescopes.

International Space Station (ISS) A space station orbiting about 400 kilometres (about 250 miles) above Earth. It is made up of separate modules, inside which are laboratories and living spaces. The first part of the ISS was launched in 1998, and assembled in space between then and 2011. Other components have been added on later missions. It has has been continuously occupied since 2000. 

Juno A US space probe launched in 2011 to investigate Jupiter. In orbit around the planet since 2016, Juno is measuring Jupiter's composition, gravity and magnetic field. It is also searching for clues about how the planet was formed, whether it has a rocky core and how much water it has in its atmosphere.

Laika The Russian dog that, in November 1957, became the first animal to be launched into orbit.

Leonov, Alexei (1934–2019) Soviet astronaut who was the first human to walk in space. In 1965 he left the Voskhod 2, attached to a tether, and stayed outside the craft for 12 minutes.

Luna 9 The Soviet space probe that, in 1966, was the first spacecraft to make a successful landing on the Moon. Luna 9 sent back television pictures after its protective casing opened.

Lunar Roving Vehicle A four-wheeled, battery-powered vehicle that was taken on the last three Apollo missions. It is also known as the Moon buggy. It was the first manned extra-terrestrial vehicle.

Magellan space probe US space probe, launched in 1989, that used radar to “see” through Venus’s thick atmosphere and make images of its surface.

Mariner 2 US space probe that was the first successful craft to reach another planet. In 1962, Mariner 2 flew past Venus, capturing data from the planet’s surface.

McCandless, Bruce (1937–2017) The first person to go “outside” in space with no tether. McCandless travelled in a small chair-like vehicle called a Manned Manoeuvring Unit, fitted with gas-powered thrusters.

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is an agency of the US government responsible for its space exploration programme and research in astronomy and Earth sciences. Established in 1958, NASA has led most US space missions, including the Apollo Moon landings, Skylab space station, Space Shuttle and space probes such as the recent Cassini, New Horizons and Perseverance missions. NASA collaborates with other government space agencies in programmes such as the International Space Station and James Webb Space Telescope. 

New Horizons US space probe which became, on 14th July 2015, the first spacecraft to reach Pluto. Launched in 2006, it took detailed images and recorded measurements of the the dwarf planet as it zoomed past just 12,500 kilometres (7800 miles) from Pluto's surface. On 1st January 2019, New Horizons passed about 3500 kilometres (2000 miles) from Arrokoth, a tiny, potato-shaped world lying within what is known as the Kuiper Belt.

Perseverance A rover designed and built to explore Jezero Crater on Mars for NASA's Mars 2020 mission. The central aim of its mission, which began with a successful landing on Mars in February 2021, is to determine whether life once existed on Mars. Perseverance carried on board a mini-helicopter, named Ingenuity, which made the first powered flight ever to take place on another world when it took to the Martian skies on 19th April 2021.

Pioneer missions US missions that sent space probes to Jupiter, Saturn and Venus in the 1970s. Pioneer 10 was the first manmade object to leave the Solar System.

Rosetta European Space Agency’s Rosetta space probe was launched in March 2004. It reached Comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko in May 2014 and entered into orbit around the comet. It successfully launched its lander, called Philae, on to the surface of the comet in November 2014. It sent back detailed information about the chemical composition of the comet.

Salyut 1 The first permanent space station, launched in April 1971. Salyut 1 was 15 metres (49 feet) long, powered by wing-like solar panels and manned by Soviet astronauts.

Saturn V The rocket-powered launch vehicle built for the Apollo missions. Saturn V was split into parts, called stages, that fired one after another, dropping off when they ran out of fuel.

Soyuz A series of spacecraft which has been in service since 1966, replacing the Voskhod spacecraft used before. Designed for the Soviet space programme, Soyuz spacecraft are now built for the Russian space agency, Roscosmos. They are launched on a Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan and are mainly used for ferrying crew to and from the International Space Station (ISS). Soyuz is also the name for a family of rocket-powered launch vehicles used for around 1900 spaceflights so far, including the launch of satellites and uncrewed Progress spacecraft delivering cargo to the ISS.

Space agency An organization, usually funded by governments engaged in space exploration. Six government space agencies have full launch capabilities: the ability to launch satellites, develop rocket engines and operate space probes, including landing them on other worlds. They are: the China National Space Administration (CNSA), the European Space Agency (ESA), the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), the (US) National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the Russian Federal Space Agency (RFSA or Roscosmos).

Space Race A 20th-century competition between the Soviet Union and the United States to achieve superior spaceflight capability. The USSR gained an early lead in the Space Race by becoming the first to achieve the successful launch of an artificial satellite, Sputnik 1, on 4th October 1957. It then sent the first human to space with the orbital flight of Yuri Gagarin on 12th April 1961 and made the first landing on the Moon, accomplished by the unmanned Luna 9 spacecraft. The US responded by achieving the first manned landing on the Moon, performed by Apollo 11 on 20th July 1969.

Spaceplane A vehicle that can fly like an aeroplane in Earth's atmosphere, like a spacecraft in space, and be able to orbit the Earth. All types of spaceplane have so far been rocket-powered and landed as unpowered gliders.

SpaceX Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (SpaceX) is a private US company engaged in space exploration. SpaceX was founded in 2002 by Elon Musk with the eventual goal of enabling the colonization of Mars. SpaceX manufactures Falcon 9 launch vehicles, rocket engines, Dragon spacecraft and Starlink communications satellites. The company is also developing Starship, a fully reusable launch vehicle to enable interplanetary spaceflight.

Sputnik 1 The first manmade object to orbit Earth, launched in 1957. Sputnik 1 remained in orbit for 92 days.

Tereshkova, Valentina (born 1937) Russian astronaut who became the first woman in space in 1963, when she orbited the Earth 48 times on board Vostok 6.

V-2 missile The first manmade object in space, launched in October 1942. Designed and built by Wernher von Braun, the German V-2 was 14 metres (45 feet) tall and powered by liquid fuel. It was used as a long-range missile during World War II.

Viking programme Two US space probes that were sent to Mars in 1975. Viking 1 and 2 were the first probes to land successfully on Mars and send back data.

Vostok launcher Russian rocket that launched Sputnik 1 into space.

Voyager programme US mission that sent space probes to Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune in the 1980s.

Consultant: Chris Oxlade