Childrens Space History

Today, everyone is familiar with Neil Armstrong's famous words as he first set foot on the moon: "one small step for man; one giant leap for mankind." But America's journey to the moon was anything but simple. In 1957, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik, the world's first satellite, into orbit; later that year, America's first attempt was such a failure that the media nicknamed it "Kaputnik." Still, we didn't give up. With each failure, we gleaned valuable information about what went wrong, and how to avoid it in the future. So we tried again. And again. And each time we failed, we failed a little bit better.

From a launchpad in Florida to the lunar surface ... Two cartoon flies join listeners as they blast off into space and step foot on the moon with Neil Armstrong, providing a blend of facts and fun while telling the story of a great moment in space-exploration history.

There are so many amazing, daring, and exciting missions to outer space that have succeeded. But for every success, there are mistakes, surprises, and flat-out failures that happen along the way. In this collection, best-selling author and award-winning journalist Jeffrey Kluger recounts 12 such disasters, telling the stories of the astronauts and the cosmonauts, the trials and the errors, the missions and the misses.

What's more exciting that spaceships and astronauts? How about a spaceship carrying the first astronauts ever to see the moon first-hand - on Christmas! The year was 1968, and the American people were still reeling from the spacecraft fire that killed the Apollo 1 crew a year earlier. On top of that, there were rumors that the Russian cosmonauts were getting ready to fly around the moon. NASA realized that they needed to take a bold step - and that they needed to take it now.

This exciting second book in the Lost series tells the incredible true story of the doomed Apollo 13 moon mission that nearly ended in disaster. On April 11, 1970, the Apollo 13 space shuttle set off for the third intended American moon landing. Two days later and 200,000 miles from Earth, disaster struck when an oxygen tank exploded onboard the spacecraft, leaving three astronauts with only one goal: to make it home alive.

Let your inner astronaut explore outer space with this interactive trivia book from Jeopardy! champ and New York Times bestselling author Ken Jennings. With this book about space you’ll become an expert and wow your friends and teachers with out-of-this-world facts: Did you know that Mars has a volcano bigger than the state of Arizona? Or that there’s a star with a diamond the size of our moon at its core? With cool trivia, and fun quizzes to test your knowledge, this guide will have you on your way to whiz-kid status in no time!

July 20, 1969. It’s a day that has earned a spot in history. It’s the day that America was the first nation to succeed in sending two astronauts - Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong - to the moon. But what led to this unforgettable event? What were the stakes riding on the Apollo 11’s safe landing? In acclaimed author Douglas Brinkley’s first young readers' edition, space fans will get the riveting and factual backstory of arguably the most significant achievement of the 20th century.

What is a space archaeologist? After decades of leaving behind old pieces of equipment orbiting in space, scientists want to clean it up. An archaeologist determines what is important to save for the history of human space exploration. Learn about new efforts to identify and even retrieve old space equipment! How should scientists determine what should be preserved or what is junk?

Scott Kelly, an American astronaut, went to space in the 1990s and 2000s. In 2015, he spent nearly a year in space. While there, his body was compared to his twin's on the ground. The data helped us learn about the impacts of space on the human body. Learn more about Kelly's life as an astronaut!

Humans have always been fascinated by the universe, but only a few have been daring enough to travel beyond the Earth. From venturing into space for the first time to building the International Space Station in orbit, the history of space exploration is filled with peril, bravery and strokes of genius. In this beautifully illustrated anthology, spaceflight expert, Libby Jackson, reveals the very best true stories of humankind's thrilling journey to the stars.

An all-seeing Moon rock of almost impossible age, called Bok, has been looking down at our blue and green planet for millennia. Geologists - people who study rocks - have a saying: 'rocks remember.' During his time, Bok has witnessed some truly wondrous things. Created in the earth-shattering collision four and a half billion years ago that led to the formation of the Moon, he has seen stars burst into being and meteors streak through the solar system. He has seen his own Moon surface be transformed with craters, and he has watched a fiery planet transform into the haven we know today.