
The Eisenhower Administration decided to split the United States' military and civil spaceflight programs, which were organized together under Defense Department's Advanced Research Projects Agency. However, Project Vanguard was plauged by several issues and the Army Ballistic Missile Agency would launch Explorer 1, America's first satellite, on February 1, 1958. Despite NACA's early rocketry program, the responsibility for launching the first American satellite fell to the Naval Research Laboratory's Project Vanguard. The Soviet Union's launch of Sputnik 1 ushered in the Space Age and kicked off the Space Race. Launch of the Army Ballistic Missile Agency's Explorer 1, America's first satellite History Creating a civil aeronautics and space agency Each is led by a Center Director (data below valid as of September 1, 2022). The administration operates 10 major field centers with several managing additional subordinate facilities across the country.

The MSD budget estimate includes funds for these HQ functions. Management LeadershipĬenter-wide activities such as the Chief Engineer and Safety and Mission Assurance organizations are aligned to the headquarters function. NASA's science is focused on better understanding Earth through the Earth Observing System advancing heliophysics through the efforts of the Science Mission Directorate's Heliophysics Research Program exploring bodies throughout the Solar System with advanced robotic spacecraft such as New Horizons and planetary rovers such as Perseverance and researching astrophysics topics, such as the Big Bang, through the James Webb Space Telescope, and the Great Observatories and associated programs.

The agency is also responsible for the Launch Services Program, which provides oversight of launch operations and countdown management for uncrewed NASA launches.

NASA supports the International Space Station and oversees the development of the Orion spacecraft and the Space Launch System for the crewed lunar Artemis program, Commercial Crew spacecraft, and the planned Lunar Gateway space station. NASA has since led most American space exploration, including Project Mercury, Project Gemini, the 1968–1972 Apollo Moon landing missions, the Skylab space station, and the Space Shuttle. space development effort a distinctly civilian orientation, emphasizing peaceful applications in space science. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), to give the U.S. federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration ( NASA / ˈ n æ s ə/) is an independent agency of the U.S.
