1958 - U.S. Air Force launches first successful American satellite, and U.S. Congress establishes NASA.

Congress created the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) on October 1, 1958, to perform civilian research related to space flight and aeronautics. President Dwight D. Eisenhower commissioned T. Keith Glennan, right, as the first NASA administrator and Hugh L. Dryden as deputy administrator. (NASA)