The 1980s

8 missions

Space Shuttle Challenger

NASA1986Destroyed during launch

Exploded 73 seconds after launch on January 28, 1986, killing all 7 crew. Caused by an O-ring failur...

Mir

Soviet Union/Roscosmos1986-2001Earth orbit

The first modular space station, continuously inhabited for nearly 10 years. Survived a fire and a c...

Galileo

NASA1989-2003Jupiter orbit

First spacecraft to orbit Jupiter. Dropped a probe into Jupiters atmosphere that survived 58 minutes...

Magellan

NASA1989-1994Venus orbit

Mapped 98% of Venus surface using radar, penetrating the thick clouds. Revealed a young surface with...

Venera 13

Soviet Union1982Venus surface

Returned the first color images from the Venusian surface. Survived 127 minutes, a record for Venus ...

Space Shuttle Columbia STS-1

NASA1981Orbital test flight

The first flight of the Space Shuttle, on April 12, 1981, exactly 20 years after Gagarin. John Young...

COBE

NASA1989-1993Cosmology

Detected faint temperature ripples in the cosmic microwave background, the seeds of all galaxies. Th...

Giotto

ESA1985-1992Comet flyby

Flew within 596 km of the nucleus of comet Halley in March 1986, the first close look at a comet. Wa...