Special Sub-Topic: Other Worlds Than This Click Here To Play: Other Worlds Than This

The closest planet to the Sun, Mercury was first visited in 1974 by this spacecraft. Can you name it?

Mariner 10. Mariner 10 actually made 3 visits to Mercury, two in 1974, and the last in early 1975.

First launched by the Soviet Union in the early 1960's, this series of spacecraft was made specifically for the exploration and observation of Venus. What was the name of these spacecraft?

Venera. Because of the super-dense atmosphere of Venus, Venera 7 was the first in the series to make a landing, transmitting data back to Earth in 1970.

Which country launched the first successful space craft to Mars?

The United States. Mariner 4 was launched in 1964, and it sent back the first successful pictures of Mars. The first attempt was by the Soviet Union in 1960, but this spacecraft (named Marsnik 1) was destroyed on launch.

The fifth planet from the sun, Jupiter, was impacted by a comet in July 1994. Can you name the comet?

Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9. This incident was spectacular because in the footage of the impact. Due to Jupiter's gasious atmosphere, it seemed as if it was absorbing the comet, rather than an impact.

One of Saturn's moons was reported in 2008 to have rings. Which one is it?

Rhea. This possible ring system was first seen in 2005 by the Cassini spacecraft. It was identified as a possible ring system in 2008.

The seventh planet from the sun, Uranus, has been visited by only one spacecraft. Can you name this "wanderer"?

Voyager 2. Voyager 2 visited Uranus in 1986. It was last known to be past Neptune and is almost out of transmission range.

The spacecraft known for visiting Uranus has also been the one to have made the only visit of Neptune. What year did it first encounter Neptune?

1989. Voyager 2 visited Neptune, and has also thus far been the only man-made spacecraft to visit the planet.

Pluto, due to its distance away from us, has never been observed on Earth by a spacecraft. In 2006, a mission was launched to hopefully make these observations possible. What is the name of this mission?

New Horizons. New Horizons, launched in 2006, will hopefully reach Pluto by the year 2015.

This spacecraft, sent back in 1965 to the Sun, is the first spacecraft to make a successful orbit of the Sun. What is its name?

Pioneer 6. Pioneer 6 last had contact with Earth back in 2000, 35 years after it was launched.

One more world, closer to us than any other, is our Moon. It was first landed upon by Neil Armstrong in 1969. Do you know the name of his space flight when he made this historic landing?

Apollo 11. Neil Armstrong landed on the Moon on July 20, 1969. It was then he uttered the now famous line, "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."