National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration, commonly referred to as NASA, was the most advanced human government space agency throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. NASA was responsible for humanity earliest major breakthroughs in space technology, accomplished the first manned landings across the Sol system, and paved the way for human dominance in space.

History

Founding

During the mid-twentieth century, clashing ideologies and two World Wars resulted in the two major superpowers of Earth at the time, the United States and United Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR), to be locked in a fierce rivalry known as the Cold War.

In the year 1957 CE, the USSR launched humanity's first satellite, Sputnik 1, into low Earth orbit. Although Sputnik was harmless, a crisis ravaged the United States. Americans were terrified of the idea that in the near future the USSR could just as easily launch nuclear weapons into space. To prevent the USSR gaining an advantage over them, the United States created their own agency to research the possibilities of space exploration. Thus, NASA was born in 1959 CE.

Supersonic Aircraft (1950's)

Prior to NASA, the United States operated the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) for primarily military purposes during the first and second World Wars. Near the end of its lifetime, NACA developed the first supersonic aircraft, such as the Bell X-1. One of NACA's final aircraft was the X-15 rocket plane, and after NACA was disbanded, NASA used the X-15 on its first tests. These tests reached heights up to 108 kilometers and developed the earliest human spacesuit and spacecraft technologies.

Space Race

The USSR saw the founding of NASA as a challenge to their technological capabilities. Known as the Space Race, immediately the USSR and United States began a lengthy and expensive competition to out do each other in space accomplishments. After a decade of work, NASA became the "victor" of the Space Race after they became the first to land humans on Luna. To accomplish this task, NASA progressed through three programs: Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo.

Mercury (1959-1962 CE)

In 1959 CE, NASA began the Mercury program, and its objective was to launch Americans into space as soon as possible and at the lowest cost available. That year, seven United States Air Force pilots were selected to become the nation's first astronauts. In 1961 CE, the first manned Redstone rocket was launched with astronaut Alan Shepherd inside the Friendship 7 capsule. The first orbital flight of the Mercury program launched in 1962 CE. On board the Mercury-Atlas rocket, inside was John Glenn, and he completed three full orbits of Earth. After Glenn, three more orbital missions were launched, the longest of which was led by Gordon Cooper with a total of 22 orbits.

Despite these accomplishments, the United States was falling short of the USSR. By 1962, the USSR had already launched four manned spacecraft, two of which, Vostok 3 and 4, had performed an orbital rendezvous with only a separation of four kilometers. In response, President John Kennedy issued a bold statement challenging NASA to land Americans on Luna before the end of 1960's and before the USSR could do so.

Gemini (1961-1966 CE)

Now with a clear goal, NASA took larger steps towards more advanced space technology. After the Mercury program ended successfully, the Gemini program was initiated in 1961 CE. Gemini's goal was to develop long-duration spaceflight technology, perfect orbital rendezvous techniques, and master precision landing. The first manned Gemini flight, Gemini 3, launched in 1965 with astronauts Gus Grissom and John Young. Nine missions followed in the next two years. Some milestones were a 14-day endurance flight, the first-ever American EVA, and the first docking in history.

Apollo (1961-1972 CE)

NASA's final program before their first landing on Luna was the Apollo moon program. Apollo, which had started simultaneously with Gemini in 1961 CE, introduced the Saturn rockets. Originally the Saturn rocket was planned to be used for the United States military, but instead, it was adapted for the Apollo program. NASA's first mission to Luna was Apollo 8, which launched in 1968 CE. Humans first landed on Luna in 1969 CE during the famous Apollo 11 mission, and it marked the first of six total landings on Luna before the last returned to Earth in 1972. Thus, it appeared the United States had "won" the space race.

Space Shuttle (1971-2011 CE)

NASA's next large program was the Space Shuttle program, which began in 1972 CE, and the focus of the program was re-usability in spacecraft. The four iconic Space Shuttles of Columbia, Challenger, Discovery, and Atlantis were built. In 1986 CE, Space Shuttle Challenger was lost, and Endeavor was built as a replacement. In 2003 CE, a second disaster destroyed Columbia. Overall, the Shuttles accumulated 135 flights before the end of the program in 2011 CE. The Space Shuttle's most famous missions included the launch and repair of the first Hubble Space Telescope and the transport of Spacelab.

International Space Station (1998-2022 CE)

1993 CE began NASA's International Space Station project. Originally NASA was intended to lead the Space Station Freedom program independently, but budget restrictions only allowed NASA to combine Freedom with Russia's Mir-2 project. After the International Space Station began construction that year, more space agencies such as Japan's JAXA, Europe's ESA, and Canada's CSA joined the program. Eventually, a total of 17 nations contributed, and the final module of the ISS was added in 2011 CE by Space Shuttle Discovery. After the Space Shuttle program ended, Russia's Soyuz rockets became the only rocket to transport astronauts to the ISS until the Space Launch System. Years later, the private space company SpaceX began using their Dragon capsules to transport supplies. A total of 65 Expeditions boarded the ISS before being deorbited in 2022 CE.

Journey to Mars

While the Space Shuttle and International Space Station were impressive feats, NASA still longed to explore new worlds beyond Earth. NASA unveiled the "Journey to Mars" campaign, a series of proposed missions, which, when done correctly and on schedule, would land humans on Mars in the 2030's and establish the first deep space colonies.

Orion (2005-2025 CE)

Orion's objective was to land at least a dozen astronauts on Luna by 2025 CE. While Orion actually began in 2005 CE, the Orion capsule, the first of several parts of the full Orion spacecraft, was not built until 2014 CE. That year the capsule underwent its first successful in-space test. In 2020 CE, NASA completed the rest of the Orion spacecraft. The Orion I mission was launched in 2021 CE. Orion I was unmanned and simply performed a fly-by encounter of Luna. The first manned mission was Orion II, which entered low Luna orbit and scanned the Sea of Clouds for future landing sites. In 2023 CE, NASA built the first of three Luna landers, Artemis. Artemis was launched in 2024 CE during Orion VI, the first Orion mission to land on Luna. Only one mission was lost, Orion VIII, which ended tragically with a heat shield failure.

Hermes (2025-2027 CE)

The landing of humans on Luna gained NASA the largest funding they had seen in decades. Thus, the Hermes program began sooner than expected in 2025 CE. Although at the surface Hermes' intention was to carry humans into interplanetary space for the first time and rendezvous with near-Earth asteroids, ultimately Hermes was to revolutionize old space technologies to be better suited for Mars missions. In total, there were three missions, the by far most famous being the Asteroid Redirect mission, otherwise known as Hermes II. Launched in 2026 CE, the main spacecraft of the program, Maia, attached to a small asteroid on a collision course with Earth roughly ten meters in diameter. After hours of thrust, Maia nudged the asteroid out of the collision course and into a path that would simply cause the asteroid to pass by Earth unaffected. During the program, the first practical ion engine for large spacecraft was developed, humanity's most efficient solar panels were invented, and life support systems could reach a duration long enough for Mars.

Ares (2027-2039 CE)

The final leg of the "Journey to Mars" was Ares, and, obviously, the goal of Ares was to land humans on Mars. Ares began in 2027 CE with the first module of the program's sole spacecraft, the Aeolus, being launched in low Earth orbit. By the end of 2028 CE, the entire spacecraft completed orbital construction. Roughly half the size of the International Space Station, up to that point in history Aeolus was the largest and most sophisticated spacecraft ever to fly. Originally, NASA planned to depart for Mars in 2031 CE; however, preparations for the mission were completed prematurely, and, to avoid the risk of Aeolus being damaged while in orbit, Aeolus launched in 2029 CE. On board were eight astronauts: five Americans, two Russians, and one French. Aeolus arrived at Mars late that year, and on December 18, American astronaut Laura Teller became the first human to set foot on Mars within the Holden crater. Six Ares missions followed until the end of the program in 2039 CE.

Europa Clipper and Europan Bullet (2026-2039 CE)

In 2026 CE, NASA's detected the first trace of alien life within Europa. The discovery was made by the Europa Clipper's lander, Sarpedon. After touching down within the Thrace Macula region of Europa, Sarpedon deployed the first of its three small thermal drills. After burrowing around twenty meters below the surface, the drill performed a series of sampling tests on surrounding rock and ice. Soon after, the drill came into contact with organic molecules only possible due to active life. NASA deployed Sarpedon's other two drills, which reached depths of thirty-five and forty meters, respectively. As predicted, the drills discovered that the further deeper into the surface they burrowed, the more organics were present.

With humanity on the verge of discovering alien life, the United States Congress granted NASA $4 billion to construct and launch a larger Europa lander that would be capable of drilling as deep as 100 kilometers. NASA began construction of the Europan Bullet lander in 2029 CE, but very quickly several implications were found. Drilling technology was not advanced enough to dig as deep as projected, and to develop such a technology would exceed NASA's given budget. To solve this problem, NASA partnered with ESA, JAXA, and many other private space companies. A few nations, such as Canada, Russia, and China, also provided funding and resources for the project.

The Europan Bullet completed construction in 2032 CE and was launched the following year. The Bullet arrived at Europa and made a successful landing in 2039 CE. The drills were deployed shortly after, and since the they were directly connected to the Bullet's power source, the drills operated for months. After five weeks, the first of the two drills finally broke through the thickest portion of Europa's outer crust and began to burrow through the warmer, less dense ice of the inner crust. The drill made rapid progress, and a week later, the drill, at last, reached liquid water.

A sampling of the water revealed objects similar to cells. After putting the cells through a series of tests, it was deduced that these cells were, in fact, alive. A few days afterward, the second drill reached Europa's ocean. Unlike its counterpart, this drill carried auditory and video equipment. After engaging its underwater floodlamp, the drill began to capture high-resolution images and video. Immediately visible was a vast variety of sea-life, such as large, slender eels and intricate bioluminescent jellyfishes. After a few hours of video recording, the camera detected a pod of massive whale-like creatures being attracted by the drill's floodlamp. However, the whales appeared to express intrigue, not fear, of the drill. Audio clips recorded the whales communicating a vast assortment of rapid, high-pitched screeches and clicks far more complex than any regular animal could produce.

NASA suspected these whales were intelligent creatures, and a means of communication was devised. By toggling the floodlamp on and off, the drill relayed the first ten prime numbers. Incredibly, the whales not only returned the ten prime numbers they had been given, but they also returned the next six prime numbers. Seeing this, it was obvious the whales were intelligent beings. However, knowledge of the discovery the public was disclosed two years later.

Space Revolution (2040-2100 CE)

Up until this point in history, space exploration was limited to only an elite few capable of completing rigorous training. This began to change in the 2040's CE, however. Known as the Space Revolution, major advancements in space technology allowed regular people to explore space without government intervention. Furthermore, government agencies such as NASA landed humans in the furthest reaches of the Sol system, established many permanent colonies and space stations, and developed means of traveling faster than the speed of light.

Kuiper Belt Exploration Program (2045-2080 CE)

NASA was one of many participants in the Kuiper Belt Exploration Program (KBEP), a massive effort led by several space companies to land humans in the outer Sol system. The program launched several successful manned and unmanned exploration and colonization missions to Pluto, Eris, Makemake, Haumea and Sedna. Due to the KBEP's accomplishments, humanity first began operating politics and economics on an interplanetary scale.

Warp Drive

Perhaps NASA's greatest innovation was the warp drive. During the early years of the Kuiper Belt Exploration Program, NASA began to research faster means of space travel. However, the effort was a mess due to a lack of political support. For the first two years of the study, NASA researched fusion propulsion, but since the technology was nowhere near adequate, progress was discontinued. NASA put efforts toward ion, solar, and pulsed plasma propulsion over the next four years, but none provided quality results.

In 2051 CE, German scientist Dr. Eckhard Brestrich approached NASA with compelling evidence that confirmed warp drive technology could work. NASA agreed to cooperate wth Brestrich in the development of the warp drive. The warp drive theory also was convincing enough to gain funding from many other space companies, primarily SpaceX and Boeing.

Initial progress was extremely slow. Even at the time, faster than light travel remained as a far-off notion, and the idea weighed the project down as many working on the project disbelieved themselves the warp drive could be created in their lifetimes. However, a breakthrough arrived in 2054 CE. Using thousands of nanoplates, NASA successfully magnified the Casimir effect to very slightly accelerate a small satellite in high Earth orbit. Technology improved dramatically, and soon spacecraft were equipped with millions of nanoplates.

In 2058 CE, NASA completed construction of humanity's first manned spacecraft equipped with a warp drive: the IXS Enterprise. The Enterprise was highly experimental, and months were spent to completely examine the spacecraft for any flaws. No errors were uncovered, and the first live test was given a date.

On January 1, 2059 CE, the first crew of the Enterprise arrived onboard. A few hours later, the Enterprise engaged its warp drive and vanished from cameras recording the events. The Enterprise arrived back at Earth 26 hours later. The Enterprise's warp drive exceeded NASA's expectations by achieving speeds of 90 times faster than light.