1967: The American lander Surveyor 3 achieves a soft landing in the Ocean of Storms. Equipped with a robotic shovel, it analysed the strength of the lunar soil, confirming that a crewed module could land without sinking—clearing the way for the Apollo programme.

 2004: Dutch astronaut André Kuipers blasts off for the International Space Station (ISS) on the DELTA mission. This flight underscores the importance of European cooperation (ESA) in microgravity scientific research, covering fields such as human physiology and solar physics.

Image credits : nasa.gov