Every single crewed mission to space — on one definitive map

Every single crewed mission to space — on one definitive map View our Twitter (X) feedView our Youtube channelView our Instagram feedView our Substack feedView our Spotify feed Every single crewed mission to space — on one definitive map Big Think’s latest poster is a detailed look at humanity’s loftiest enterprise so far: making it off-planet. Science and TechHistory and SocietySpace ExplorationSpace MissionsAerospace “A Visual History of Crewed Space Travel” is now available inBig Think’s online storeon Pop Chart, where you can also find our first two posters, “A Visual History of the Universe” and “A Literary Map of the United States,” and other Big Think merch. Future space cowboys and girls, stick this on your wall as you beat a path to the stars.

This poster is a snapshot of humanity’s loftiest enterprise so far: making it off-planet. It maps Earth’s main spaceports, the landing sites on the Moon, the highest and farthest orbits traveled by us humans, and the spectacular array of suits and vehicles that got us there. Crewed spaceflight is barely 65 years old.

On April 12, 1961, Yuri Gagarin rocketed off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan for a trip around Earth. Despite its brevity — just one hour and 48 minutes from launch to landing — that single orbit around the planet was, pardon the pun, revolutionary. Gagarin was not only the first human in orbit, but his safe return proved that crewed spaceflight was possible.

He opened the door for everyone who came after. This Soviet success also shocked the U.S. into accelerating its own space program, helping the nation achieve the first Moon landing just eight years later. The space race has turned into a stampede.

Nearly 19,000 satellites now orbit Earth, including nearly 3,000 dead ones. Other pieces of space junk — rocket bodies, debris fragments, etc. — number in the tens of thousands. More than a dozen countries have independent orbital launch capability, including Israel, Iran, and both Koreas.

While space launches have become fairly common, crewed spaceflights remain prestigious and rare. How many people have traveled to outer space? The exact number depends on your definition of “outer space.” The Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI), the international record-keeping body for spaceflight, defines “outer space” as beginning 100 km (62 miles) above sea level, the so-called Kármán line.