October 27, 1961: SA-1
Uncrewed suborbital flight. The Saturn I rocket’s first test flight climbs 85 miles.
April 25, 1962: SA-2
Uncrewed suborbital flight. This test flight of Saturn I carries 190,000 pounds of water to an altitude of 65 miles.
May 28, 1964: SA-6
Apollo/Saturn uncrewed Earth-orbiting mission. The first flight of an Apollo spacecraft model.
February 16, 1965: SA-9/Pegasus 1
Apollo/Saturn uncrewed Earth-orbiting mission. One of three missions that would measure the abundance of space rocks above Earth.
February 26, 1966: AS-201
Uncrewed suborbital flight. A Saturn 1B rocket carries the Apollo spacecraft 310 miles up, testing its heat shield and mission support facilities.
July 5, 1966: AS-203
Apollo/Saturn uncrewed Earth-orbiting mission. Test flight of Saturn V rocket instruments collects flight information under orbital conditions.
January 27, 1967: Apollo 1 accident
A fire kills the mission’s three astronauts during a preflight test at Cape Canaveral. Crew: Virgil “Gus” Grissom, Edward White and Roger Chaffee.
November 9, 1967: Apollo 4
Apollo/Saturn uncrewed Earth-orbiting mission. Tests all aspects of the Saturn V launch vehicle.
January 22, 1968: Apollo 5
Apollo/Saturn uncrewed Earth-orbiting mission. First test flight of the lunar module.
October 11, 1968: Apollo 7
Apollo Earth-orbiting mission. First crewed Apollo spacecraft flight. Crew: Walter Schirra Jr., Donn Eisele and Walter Cunningham.
December 21, 1968: Apollo 8
Apollo lunar mission. First crewed mission to orbit the moon. Crew: Frank Borman, Jim Lovell and William Anders.
March 3, 1969: Apollo 9
Apollo crewed Earth-orbiting mission. First crewed flight with the lunar module. Crew: James McDivitt, David Scott and Russell “Rusty” Schweickart.
May 18, 1969: Apollo 10
Apollo lunar mission. The final dress rehearsal confirms everything but the actual landing. Crew: Thomas Stafford, John Young and Eugene Cernan.
July 16, 1969: Apollo 11
Apollo lunar mission. Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin become the first humans to walk on the moon. Michael Collins stays in lunar orbit.
November 14, 1969: Apollo 12
Apollo lunar mission. The second lunar landing. Crew: Charles Conrad Jr., Richard Gordon and Alan Bean.
April 11, 1970: Apollo 13
Apollo lunar mission. An in-flight explosion thwarts landing, but the crew returns safely. Crew: Jim Lovell, John “Jack” Swigert and Fred Haise.
January 31, 1971: Apollo 14
Apollo lunar mission. Another successful journey. Crew: Alan Shepard Jr., Stuart Roosa and Edgar Mitchell.
July 26, 1971: Apollo 15
Apollo lunar mission. The fourth flight to land on the moon, it is the first to use the lunar roving vehicle. Crew: David Scott, Alfred Worden and James Irwin.
April 16, 1972: Apollo 16
Apollo lunar mission. The fifth trek to the lunar surface. Crew: John Young, Thomas “Ken” Mattingly and Charles Duke Jr.
December 7, 1972: Apollo 17
Apollo lunar mission. Last voyage to the moon. The astronauts travel the greatest distance on the lunar rover and return more rock and soil samples. Crew: Harrison Schmitt, Eugene Cernan and Ronald Evans.
[This timeline originally appeared in print as "Apollo Milestones."]
