NASA

Historical eventDecember 181999

NASA

NASA launches into orbit the Terra platform carrying five Earth Observation instruments, including ASTER, CERES, MISR, MODIS and MOPITT.

Everything on December 18Original source

In context

When
Saturday, December 18 199927 years ago
Category
Historical eventA dated happening — a battle, treaty, launch, discovery, disaster or decision — recorded on this calendar day.
Era
20th century · 1990s
Recorded from
Wikipedia “On this day” feed

At a glance

Dates: From 1999.

What happened

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government responsible for the United States' civil space program, as well as research in aeronautics and space. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., NASA operates ten field centers across the US and is organized into three mission directorates: Human Spaceflight, Research and Technology, and Science. Established in 1958 amid the Space Race,

December 18 through the years

Other entries on the same calendar day, in order.

  1. 1996Oakland Unified School District
  2. 1999NASA
  3. 20022003 California gubernatorial recall election
  4. 2005Chadian Civil War (2005–2010)
  5. 20062006–2007 Southeast Asian floods
  6. 2006United Arab Emirates
  7. 2015Kellingley Colliery
  8. 2017Amtrak Cascades
  9. 2019First impeachment of Donald Trump
  10. 2022Argentina national football team
  11. 20232023 Serbian election protests

Also in 1999

  • September 9Singapore Portrait Series currency notesThe first banknotes of the Portrait Series of the Singapore dollar were introduced by the Board of Commissioners of Currency.
  • September 14KiribatiKiribati, Nauru and Tonga join the United Nations.
  • October 22Maurice PaponMaurice Papon, an official in the Vichy government during World War II, is jailed for crimes against humanity.
  • May 25United States House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives releases the Cox Report which details China's nuclear espionage against the U.S. over the prio…
  • August 101999 Los Angeles Jewish Community Center shootingOne person is killed and five people are injured in the Los Angeles Jewish Community Center shooting.
  • January 3Mars Polar LanderThe Mars Polar Lander is launched by NASA.
  • November 27New Zealand Labour PartyThe Labour Party defeated the governing National Party in the New Zealand general election, with Labour's Helen Clark becoming the countr…
  • July 5Bill ClintonU.S. President Bill Clinton imposes trade and economic sanctions against the Taliban regime in Afghanistan.

Everything we record for 1999 →

Sources

Cite this page

“NASA”, What's On This Date, https://whatsonthisdate.com/app/event/nasa-1999-december-18, accessed October 28, 2026.

Cite the underlying source as well — the source links above go to the record this entry is adapted from.

Questions about this entry

When did NASA happen?

December 18 1999 — 27 years ago, on a Saturday.

Where does this text come from?

Wikipedia “On this day” feed. Summaries are short adaptations that link back to the source, not reprints.

How do I cite this page?

Use the ready-made citation near the sources at the bottom of the page, and follow the source link to cite the underlying record as well.

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