1959

Events

• Satellite "Luna 2" becomes the first man-made object to crash on the Moon.

• "Luna 3" is launched, orbiting the Moon and photographing 70 percent of the moon's "far side."

• 3 days later, these photos are transmitted back to Earth, giving scientists their first look at the far side of the moon.

• "Pioneer IV" (the first US satellite to orbit the sun) probe reaches its farthest point from the sun.

• "Vanguard 2," the first weather satellite, is launched to measure cloud cover for the United States Navy.

• "Explorer 6" sends the first picture of Earth from orbit.

• The "Jupiter AM-18" rocket launches two primates into space, along with living microorganisms and plant seeds.
  Their subsequent successful recovery makes them the first living beings to return safely to Earth after space flight.

• The first mammals, a litter of rabbits, are grown from ova, having undergone in vitro fertilizations and transferred to a surrogate mother.

Other Alpha Quadrant events

• Tellar Prime becomes warp-capable.

Timeline
1958	1959	1960